


Hogwartvengers: Year Five

by orphan_account



Series: Hogwartvengers 'Verse [5]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Hogwarts AU, Hogwartvengers - Freeform, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-04
Updated: 2012-12-22
Packaged: 2017-11-15 15:29:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 16
Words: 46,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/528772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As the Avengers get older, their days at Hogwarts start getting even more interesting, and secrets don't stay secret for much longer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Making a Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve, faced with a bad diagnosis and an even worse future, desperately searches for a cure. Obadiah Stane says Stark Industries can help.

Steve had known it was coming for a while now. He’d had the diagnosis for months, and had just been waiting for the day things started to get really bad. His magic had never been brilliant, but he knew it was getting worse. There really wasn’t much hope left.

It turned out, there was a very rare genetic disorder that meant a squib was born with enough magic to be classified as a witch or wizard, but began to lose that magic after puberty began and eventually became a squib as they were meant to be. And, just his luck, on top of all his other medical conditions, Steve had this genetic disorder. Ever since he’d found out, he’d searched desperately for a cure. There had been nothing, but Steve had kept searching, not telling anyone about his disorder. He didn’t even tell Bucky, not wanting to break his friend’s heart by letting him know that while he’d continue on and graduate from Hogwarts, Steve wouldn’t. He was determined to find some sort of cure before it came to that. He’d spent most of his third year looking for any kind of research, experiment or anything, but it was now the summer, and he was running out of time and options. And then he found it.

It was new, and Steve only found it by searching some shady websites on his Starkphone. Apparently, Stark Industries had been doing some research years ago, but it had been discontinued. That research, however, had been resumed shortly after Howard’s death, and apparently they’d made a breakthrough. It was still in experimental stages, but they were looking for test subjects. Steve signed up almost immediately; the way he was going, he wouldn’t have any magic left by the end of the summer. 

Stark Industries contacted him the next day, asking him to come to their labs in central London for the procedure. Steve knew he should’ve contacted Tony, asked for some more information, but he didn’t want the older boy knowing about his disorder, and if all went well he’d never have to know. So Steve lied to Bucky about doing a job interview and got the tube into central London, walking the rest of the way to Stark Industries. It was the tallest building in the city, flashy and obvious, and it reminded him of Tony. “Uh, excuse me, Ma’am,” he stuttered at the reception desk, seeing a bored Asian woman sat behind the desk. She looked up, raising an eyebrow at him. “I’m Steve Rogers, I have an appointment.” She nodded, glancing at her computer screen. 

“Take the elevator down to basement level five, the doctor will be waiting for you there,” she told him flatly, gesturing to an elevator off to the side. Ignoring his sweaty palms, Steve walked in the direction she’d pointed, stepping into the sleek steel elevator and pressing the button for basement five before he could chicken out. It travelled quickly, and there was a blonde-haired nurse waiting for him when he stepped out.

“This way, Mr Rogers,” she told him with a smile. “Dr Erskine and Mr Stane are expecting you.” Steve’s eyebrows rose; Mr Stane was part of the project? That didn’t sound like him, from what Tony had said of him. Still, he obediently followed the nurse into a waiting room, where he was told to change into a pair of drawstring cotton trousers and wait for Dr Erskine. Putting all his things safely in his bag, including his wand, he kept it close by him. Perched anxiously on the examination bed with no shirt on, Steve tried to ignore the way his shoulders were shaking. Suddenly, the door opened, and a man stepped in. He froze when he saw Steve, frowning. 

“This cannot be right,” he declared in a German-accented voice. “You are just a boy.” Steve’s heart plummeted. Was he too young for the treatment? That couldn’t be right. Any older and it would be too late; they’d have no magic to regenerate. 

“He is the right age, Dr Erskine,” a smooth voice that Steve recognised cut in. Obadiah Stane. Luckily, despite hanging around with Tony, Steve had never actually met Stane, so he wasn’t recognised here. That was good. Tony wouldn’t know. “Good afternoon, Mr Rogers. Are you prepared?” Steve nodded, jaw set determinedly.

“I want the treatment,” he insisted, eyes flicking to Erskine. “I don’t want to lose my magic.” Erskine looked, if possible, more perplexed.

“Of course you don’t, Steve. Don’t worry; Dr Erskine’s serum will completely remove the Hydra gene from your DNA sequence,” Stane assured him. Suddenly, Erskine looked as if everything made sense.

“Yes, of course, the Hydra gene will be no longer,” he agreed. “Mr Stane, would you excuse me for a moment to prepare my patient?” Stane nodded curtly, leaving the room, and Erskine fixed serious eyes on Steve. “My boy, I cannot allow you to do this without knowing all the facts. My serum is not just a cure for the Hydra degeneration.” Steve raised an eyebrow.

“It’s not?” he asked, and Erskine shook his head hurriedly, grabbing a blood pressure cuff and wrapping it around Steve’s arm.

“No; the serum is in testing to be used in a military format, to create the perfect soldier. Enhanced strength, speed, stamina, healing, metabolism. An inability to get ill. Almost unending magic reserves. Every aspect of your body will be enhanced; even the parts you wish would not be. I will not lie to you, my boy; we have had some less than brilliant results in the past, with earlier versions of the serum. Men who were greedy, selfish, power-hungry. Those traits were only amplified, and it twisted them. I warn you, Mr Rogers; if you do not want to take this risk, turn back now,” he said, completely serious. 

“Why was none of this information on the website?” Steve asked, and Erskine rolled his eyes.

“Think, boy! Is advertising a serum to create human perfection really likely to bring us those who will not abuse it?” Steve bit his lip; how could he be so sure that he wouldn’t abuse it himself? But he had to at least try; he couldn’t let Bucky graduate without him.

“I still want to do the procedure,” he declared firmly, meeting the doctor’s eyes. 

“There is no chance it will work. You could die, or lose your magic even faster,” Erskine told him frankly. Steve shrugged.

“Lost magic is still lost magic, no matter how fast it happens. And… after everything I’ve experienced at Hogwarts, I’d rather die than lose my magic and never be able to go back,” he admitted freely. Erskine surveyed him for a long moment, then nodded slowly.

“I believe, my boy, that you may actually have a chance. Come; time is precious.” Steve hopped off the examination bed, grabbed his bag and followed the man out of the room and down the corridor, into a large laboratory. There was a metal bed in the centre of the room that looked vaguely like a torture device, and clearly folded up into some sort of chamber. Steve figured that was where he’d be laying. “Up on the bed,” Erskine urged, and Steve ignored his pounding heart and followed the instructions. He pretty much zoned out through the scientific explanation, only paying attention when they began to strap him down and attach electrodes to his chest and limbs. 

“Ready when you are, Doctor,” one of the technicians declared, and Steve nodded when Erskine looked his way.

“Start the procedure,” Erskine ordered. Steve shuddered as the needles full of blue potion flipped up and stabbed into his skin. He refused to scream, even as the serum burned as it entered his bloodstream. He burned all over, and he could see himself begin to sweat. Still, Erskine didn’t look worried, so he forced himself to stay calm. It was all part of the procedure.

The bed began to shudder, and Steve’s brain went hazy as the serum did its work and the bed moved into a vertical position, locking inside the chamber. He was drenched in sweat by the time the door closed on him, and as the chamber began to fill with steam, he vaguely heard shouting from the outside. Concentrating on what was being said, he panicked when he heard Erskine yell to shut it down. “No!” he shouted, hoping they could hear him. “I can take it!” It hurt like hell, felt like every cell in his body was being forcibly ripped apart, but he could take it if it meant he could graduate with Bucky. 

The procedure didn’t stop, so he assumed they heard him, and eventually the pain began to fade. The steam cleared, and the chamber door opened; technicians immediately rushed forward to unstrap him from the table. He seemed to fit it better than he had before, and as his arms came free he brought them in front of his face, eyes going wide. He had muscles! Huge ones! Stepping forward as his legs were freed, he glanced down at his bare chest, seeing yet more muscle definition. His abs looked like they were made of steel, and his pecs… Dr Erskine rushed up to him, and Steve realised he was at least a foot taller than he had been previously, now towering over the scientist. “How are you feeling, my boy?” 

“Hungry,” Steve replied on instinct, making the man laugh.

“Yes, yes, that is to be expected after such a change in metabolism. Come, come; let us take your blood, prove to you that your illness has gone.” Steve let himself be shifted aside while the metal bed was turned horizontal once more, and he perched on the edge of it, holding out an arm for Erskine to take his blood. He tried not to pay attention to how Stane was still in the corner of the room, watching him with darkened eyes. It made him nervous.

After the blood was drawn, Steve was given a t-shirt and trousers to change into, and some shoes after it was found his old ones no longer fit. Damn, he’d have to buy a whole new wardrobe. His mom was going to kill him. He looked up when a computer screen was turned in his direction, allowing him to see that the test had come back negative for the Hydra gene. He was free. “Thank you,” he breathed, still trying to regain his breath from the operation. “Dr Erskine, you have no idea how much this means… thank you.” The doctor smiled at him, patting his hand.

“Thank _you_ , my boy. The serum worked.”

“Happy days indeed,” Stane cut in, not sounding happy at all as he approached. “Have you satisfied your curiosity, Doctor? Your serum works; Stark Industries would like to start putting it into use among the Auror Corps as soon as possible.” Steve stayed quiet, wondering why Tony hadn’t mentioned any research into magical biology. He’d thought mechanics were SI’s thing. 

“It is not that simple, Mr Stane; further tests must be run, and we must wait to see if the serum has any adverse effects,” Erskine insisted. Steve could see the frustration on Stane’s face, though he tried to hide it.

“Dr Erskine, we don’t have the time to wait for this,” Stane argued curtly. Erskine shot Steve a look that read ‘businessmen, honestly’, and Steve stifled a grin. 

“Mr Stane, I assure you, you will not want me to start mass-producing the serum until we know the long-term effects. At least wait twelve hours, and I would like Mr Rogers to keep in touch with a medical team to monitor any further changes.” Stane’s scowl deepened as the doctor spoke, but before he could say anything there was a loud bang and a flash of spellfire, and Steve jumped to his feet, all senses on high alert. One of the computer consoles was up in smoke, and a technician was on the floor, white lab coat steadily turning red. Another two bangs in quick succession, and Steve ducked flying debris as the machine he’d just stepped out of blew out from the inside. He didn’t realise until the doctor fell to his knees that Erskine had a hole in his chest that was smoking spell residue, blood seeping from the wound. 

“Dr Erskine!” he exclaimed, dropping down beside the injured man. 

“Shit,” Stane muttered, looking around the room. Security guards had entered from all doors, but as of yet they didn’t seem to know who had caused the destruction. “We need a medical team in here! Damn it, Erskine’s the only one who knows the serum formula!” Steve gritted his teeth, knowing that if that hadn’t been the case Stane would have left the man there to die, but pressed his hands against the wound as his mother had taught him, trying to keep pressure the best he could. With his new muscles, he was more concerned about breaking the man’s ribs. 

“Steven,” Erskine rasped, gripping Steve’s t-shirt feebly. “It’s no use. And, perhaps, for the best.” He glanced up at Stane, who was alternating between harassing the security for answers and shouting for a medical team. “Do not let him treat you like a lab rat for the serum. If it can only be used once, I am glad it was you. Go, boy. Run and don’t let him catch you, and I am sure you will live a wonderful life.” The bloody spot on his shirt was getting bigger, and Steve could feel it hot and slick under his fingers.

“No, Doctor, the medical team are on their way,” Steve urged, but Erskine huffed out a laugh, grip on Steve’s shirt going slack.

“Not fast enough, my boy,” he remarked wryly, blood spotting his lips. Steve wished he were capable of doing magic outside of school, wondered why no-one was helping, and looked up to see several scientists staring at them in shock.

“Someone help him!” he pleaded desperately. “You all have wands, don’t you?” 

“Didn’t you see the spell?” one of the men retorted. “Anyone who isn’t a healer can’t do shit.” Erskine’s hand squeezed Steve’s briefly, his glassy eyes imploring. 

“Run, boy.” 

For once, Steve listened when someone told him to run.

.-.-.

He ended up stood outside Bucky’s door, not sure he could face his own mother. Erskine was dead, he had to be, Steve knew that. And from the sounds of things, Stane would be looking at him as the last resort to replicate the serum. Steve’s heart was pounding in his chest, and he was half amazed he hadn’t yet had a panic attack. Maybe there was something to the whole serum thing. Taking his keys from his bag and unlocking the door, he slipped through to his friend’s room. Bucky’s mother was at work, he knew, so he didn’t worry about being too quiet. “Steve? That you?” He felt some of the panic leave him at the sound of his best friend’s voice, and crossed to knock on Bucky’s door. He was surprisingly less clumsy than he’d expected to be with the new length of his limbs, but wasn’t going to complain.

“Buck?” he called hesitantly, nudging the door open. Bucky looked up, and his jaw dropped. 

“Shit, Steve, what happened to you? I definitely remember you being smaller yesterday.” Steve cracked a weak smile at his friend’s words, wincing when the bed creaked under his weight as he sat on it.

“Kind-of a long story, Buck,” he admitted, shoulders slumping. He felt an arm wind around his back, and tucked his head into Bucky’s neck like he used to, though the position was less comfortable now he was a good four inches taller than his friend.

“Start from the top, soldier, and don’t leave anything out.”

.-.

Bucky, bless his soul, seemed to take the whole thing in his stride. Though he did want to smack Steve for not telling him about the diagnosis, or the treatment. He did agree with one thing, though; he needed to talk to Tony. “Either he knows what Stane’s doing and is behind it, in which case I need to transfigure him into a piece of paper and then put him through a shredder, or he doesn’t know and Stane is messing with his company behind his back. And he needs to fix that.” Steve nodded, head still burrowed in the crook of Bucky’s neck.

“I know, I know. But… there’s still three weeks of summer left. Dr Erskine is dead, Stane can’t exactly give the serum to anyone else if Erskine was the only one who knew how to make it. I need time to get used to this, Buck. To get used to me. I’ll tell him when we get back to school,” he promised. Bucky nodded, dropping a kiss on Steve’s head.

“Sure thing. But there is no way in hell I’m letting you out of my sight for the next three weeks. If this Stane guy is after you, he has Stark’s databases at his beck and call. He can find you if he really wants to, and I’m not letting you go without a fight,” he said firmly, making Steve smile.

“Love you, Bucky. You’re the best,” he murmured, hugging his friend gently. Bucky let out a faint huff that Steve knew meant he was stifling a smile, and ruffled Steve’s hair.

“That’s what I’ve been telling you for years, man,” he teased smugly. “But I love you too, you know that. Even if you could probably bench-press me now, Merlin, have you seen your arms? You should try out for the quidditch team, seriously. Probably break the bludgers with those crazy muscles.” He poked Steve’s bicep, making the blonde snort.

“Don’t think beater would be my thing,” Steve reasoned, imagining how he’d react if he accidentally put someone in the hospital. “But hey, we need a new keeper, right? Maybe I’ll go for that.” He’d not really flown much before, as the exercise set off his asthma, but maybe he’d be good at it. 

“You’d be awesome,” Bucky insisted, gently releasing him to get a better look at his new body. “Damn. You got hot,” he joked, making Steve blush. “Ah, yep, still my Steve in there. The muscles haven’t changed the prude of a man.” That just made Steve blush harder, but he gave Bucky a grateful look.

“They weren’t kidding when they said superhuman strength. It’s definitely gonna take some getting used to,” he admitted. “And… before Erskine was hit, he was saying how he wanted a medical team on me to track any changes and make sure the serum would stick. What if it doesn’t stick, Buck? Where will I be then?” Bucky’s hand rested between Steve’s shoulder blades, rubbing soothingly.

“I’ll keep an eye on you,” he promised. “And so will your mom, and she knows medical stuff. We can track changes. And I doubt they’d be trialling it on people if it wasn’t likely to stick, not with how it’s obviously hard to make. It might not have been in the best circumstances, but this is a good thing, soldier,” he assured softly. Steve looked up, offering Bucky a smile. 

“I hope you’re right, Buck. Hell, how am I gonna tell Mom?” Bucky laughed, clapping him on the back.

“That, my friend, is your problem. Now come on, I promised Mom I’d have dinner on before she got home, and you’re helping me. Let’s see if you can not break all my plates please with those big-ass hands of yours,” he joked, nudging Steve to his feet. Steve followed obediently, a grin on his face. He should’ve known that he could grow a foot and gain twice his body weight in muscle, and Bucky would still treat him exactly the same. Sometimes, he wondered why his friend wasn’t a Hufflepuff with all that loyalty in him. “Come on, slacker! Last one to the kitchen has to take all your old clothes to the dumpster down the street!”

And then he remembered.


	2. The Same, Yet Different

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School starts back up, and Steve really doesn’t appreciate the staring. Tony finally finds out what’s happening at his company behind his back, and he isn’t best pleased.

Steve didn’t think anyone would have recognised him if not for the fact that he was walking with Bucky. He kept his head down, trying to ignore the looks and whispers and mutterings of ‘Oh Merlin, is that Steve Rogers?’. Bucky’s hand on his elbow kept him grounded, but Steve had never appreciated how easy it had been to slip into a crowd when you were small and scrawny. Now he couldn’t hide anywhere, he was a head taller than almost everyone on the platform. “Come on, let’s go find a compartment, get some privacy,” Bucky urged quietly, glaring at a wide-eyed third year girl. Steve lifted his trunk onto the train as if it weighed next to nothing, and Bucky grinned at him. “Feels good, huh?” Steve flushed, but didn’t deny it, following his friend to the nearest empty compartment. With a muttered spell, Bucky locked the door behind them, and Steve put both their trunks in the luggage rack. 

“Wow, the year’s not even started and I already want to go home,” he remarked dryly, collapsing into the nearest seat. Bucky sat beside him, their shoulders bumping lightly.

“Cheer up, man. The gossip will move on in a week or two, once something more interesting happens. Hell, give Stark your puppy eyes enough and he’ll do something to make it move on faster than that.” Steve cracked a smile; Tony would probably jump at the chance to do something to keep the gossips busy. He’d have sex with someone on the Ravenclaw table, or something equally ridiculous.

“I know, I know. I just… didn’t expect the staring to be this bad.” There had never been a reason for people to stare at him before. He was practically invisible, and he didn’t know how to cope with the attention. 

“Of course they’re staring, you’re smokin’,” Bucky teased, giving him a wink that made his cheeks burn red. “Seriously, Steve, don’t think too much on it. It’s just because it’s new; I’m sure once you stand next to Thor people will realise it’s not all that weird and think you just had a major growth spurt.” Steve raised a skeptical eyebrow, but shrugged, reaching for his sketchpad as the train began to move. 

“Whatever, Buck. Guess it’s just something I’ll have to get used to,” he mused, shifting to sit with his back against the wall, tucking his knees up to balance his sketchpad on. Bucky moved to the seat opposite, stretching out and pulling a book from his bag. Usually they’d be looking for the rest of their friends, but Steve wanted a little more time by himself before facing the rest of the world again.

.-.

The staring was just as bad when they got to Hogsmeade, though at least it was dark by then. “Damn, Steve, what did you eat this summer, man?” Steve smiled at Clint’s voice, allowing the archer to hug him briefly. “This is so not fair! You were like, the one person I was actually taller than,” the Hufflepuff complained. Steve and Bucky followed Clint to a carriage, which already had Natasha and Phil in it. 

“…Okay. That’s new,” Natasha remarked when Steve stepped into the carriage, head ducked. “Steve, you’re looking well.” Bucky snorted despite himself, squeezing in between Steve and Tasha. No one wanted to sit on the same bench as the lovebirds. 

“What happened?” Phil asked, eyebrows raised. Steve shrugged, shaking his head.

“I grew up a little,” he said evasively, not needing to look to know Bucky was giving off serious ‘drop the subject’ vibes. 

“Did you guys all get that new StarkPhone from Tony?” the shorter Gryffindor asked by way of distraction. “Pretty sweet, right.”

“Making friends with Tony Stark was the best decision I ever made,” Clint agreed with a smirk. “So much free stuff. Awesome free stuff.”

“I believe you have me to thank for that friendship,” Natasha pointed out, amused.

“Technically it’s Phil’s fault,” Clint retorted, fingers twined with his boyfriend’s. “We wouldn’t have asked Tony for help if he hadn’t been so goddamn sexy making me fall in love with him.” Phil’s smile was both embarrassed and fond, and Steve’s heart warmed a little at the pair. He had to admit, he was kinda jealous of their relationship, though he wondered when they’d started saying ‘I love you’ so easily. From the look on Clint’s face, it definitely wasn’t the first time he’d said it.

The carriages pulled up outside Hogwarts, and Steve couldn’t stop the grin that crossed his face at the sight of the castle. He was back for another year. He would be able to graduate with the rest of his friends. He and Bucky split with the others as they made their way inside and to their respective tables, and he almost laughed at the way Peggy’s jaw dropped when she saw him. “Steve,” she began softly, eyeing him. “You’ve… grown.” Bucky snorted, and Steve was saved replying when arms just as muscular as his own wrapped around his chest.

“Friend Steve!” Thor exclaimed joyously. “You have grown into a mighty warrior!” Steve chuckled, hugging Thor back just as fiercely. A year ago, that kind of embrace would have broken several of his bones. 

“Hey, Thor, it’s good to see you too,” he greeted in reply, sliding into a seat between Bucky and Peggy. Sif and the guys were round the opposite side of the table, and Volstagg reached over for an enthusiastic handshake. 

“What in Merlin’s name did you do?” Peggy hissed in his ear when everyone started to quieten down in anticipation of Fury’s speech.

“It’s a long story,” he replied, glad when the headmaster stood up and the hall went dead silent. 

Steve zoned out through most of Fury’s speech, it being fairly similar every year, but perked up when he continued speaking past its usual end point. “It has been brought to my attention,” the man declared, looking annoyed. “That I do not give you brats enough opportunities to socialise outside your houses. I, personally, think you’re better off without combining forces — yes, Stark, I am looking at you —“ Steve looked over, seeing Tony grinning proudly while Bruce shook his head in despair. “That said, we will be having a Yule Ball the weekend before we break for Christmas. This will be for third years upwards, and first and second years will have their own event at a later date. Dress code is formal, and I swear to Merlin if I see a drop of alcohol anywhere your house will be in negative points.” Fury’s eyes didn’t leave Tony as he spoke, who was still smirking. “Prefects will be in charge of organisation, and the Head Boy and Girl will brief you on that in future meetings. Don’t make me regret this.” He stepped back from his podium, and the tables immediately filled with food that made Steve’s mouth water.

“A Yule Ball, huh? Sweet,” Bucky remarked, reaching for a plate of beef. He looked up, then his eyebrows rose. “Oooh, Pegs, what’s that on your robe?” he drawled, drawing Steve’s eyes to the flash of red and gold beneath her house crest. “Is it a prefect badge by any chance?”

“You made prefect?” Steve asked, a grin tugging at his lips when Peggy blushed. “Congrats! Who else?” He glanced around, seeing the same badge adorning Fandral’s robe. “Wow, nice one!” Fandral grinned at him, and Sif gave the mountain of food Steve piled on his plate a disparaging look.

“And to think, you used to have such wonderful table manners,” she sighed, nose screwing up as Thor practically inhaled his food.

“Hey, just because I’m hungry doesn’t mean I’m gonna eat like Thor,” Steve argued lightly, making a point of cutting his chicken into manageable pieces and chewing thoroughly, despite how hungry he was. He jolted as his phone buzzed in his pocket, pulling it out. 

_‘Wow. I guess I won’t ask what you got up to this summer ;)’_ Tony. Of course. He looked up at the Ravenclaw table, and Tony gave him a bright grin. Steve attempted to smile back, but his stomach churned as he thought of the conversation he needed to have with the Ravenclaw.

 _‘I need to talk to you. Please? It’s important’_ he sent back, unsurprised when it took less than a second before Tony was glancing back down at his own phone, frowning as he read. It was StarkTech, after all.

 _‘Of course. I’ll wait outside for you after the feast’_ Steve sent the older boy a grateful smile, slipping his phone away and getting back to his dinner. Peggy tried several times to ask him about his summer, but he waved her off. He didn’t want to tell his friends just yet. Especially not until he’d spoken to Tony.

.-.-.

As promised, Tony was hanging around the house point hourglasses when Steve emerged from the Great Hall. There was no prefect badge on his robe, which Steve had expected, knowing the position would go to Bruce. “Hey,” the genius greeted with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, sneaking an arm around Steve’s waist for a hug. Steve hugged back, careful not to hurt the smaller boy. He hadn’t realised how short Tony was before now. 

“Hey, it’s good to see you,” he replied honestly. “Is there somewhere we can talk, uh, in private?” Tony’s eyes darkened, but he nodded, starting off towards an empty corridor. Steve followed him to one of the Transfiguration classrooms, and Tony locked the door with a complex-looking spell.

“Is this about your little makeover?” Tony asked, perching on the edge of a desk and swinging his legs. “Because I have to say, it’s a good look for you.” Steve flashed a quick smile, though wrung his hands nervously.

“Yeah, actually. I… I don’t know where to start.” Tony frowned, and gestured for him to sit on the desk opposite.

“Well you could start by telling me what you took or were given in order to make this happen. No way in hell does this kind of growth happen naturally.” Steve took a deep breath, reminding himself of all the things he’d come to Tony with over the years, and not once had the older boy turned him away or said a bad word to him. He could trust Tony.

“I was diagnosed with the Hydra gene the Christmas of my second year,” he blurted, watching Tony’s face go chalk-white.

“Steve, I—“ Steve shook his head, cutting his friend off, and then it all came spilling out. The website, Stane, Erskine, the serum, everything. Tony kept a white-knuckled grip on the edge of the desk as Steve spoke, and when he mentioned Stane’s plans for the serum he jumped up, pacing and muttering. 

“Tony, are you okay?” Steve asked, relieved that clearly Tony hadn’t know what Stane was doing.

“What? Oh, yeah, fine, carry on,” Tony urged, though he didn’t stop pacing. When Steve finished, the Ravenclaw let out a long breath. “So my year just got twenty times more interesting,” he murmured, looking up at Steve. “Guess I’d better get a handle on my company a little sooner than expected, huh?” Steve frowned, slipping off the desk to take a tentative step towards Tony.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to shock you.” Tony barked out a laugh, shaking his head.

“Steve, you turned up for a new year six foot a million and sex on two legs,” he pointed out, not seeing Steve blush. “Don’t say you weren’t expecting that to shock me. But don’t you worry about the company, that’s my problem, I’ll fix it. I had no idea the serum research was being continued after… after Dad died. I thought it had been shut down months before that.” Steve frowned, resting a hand on the Ravenclaw’s shoulder. 

“I had the only dose,” he promised. “That’s what made Stane so mad. And Erskine was killed, he was the only one who knew the formula.” Tony nodded, biting his lip.

“That’s good. That— that gives me a little more time. And hey, one dose, couldn’t have gone to a better guy,” he added, face completely earnest. Steve smiled even as he flushed, reaching out to wrap an arm around Tony’s shoulders, pulling him close.

“I’m really glad you didn’t know what Stane was planning,” he muttered, making Tony snort.

“You really think I’d be behind a plan like that? I mean, yeah, curing the Hydra gene, that part’s awesome — I should have a look see if I can’t salvage enough of the research to make that a thing — but giving the Auror Corps superhuman abilities? No. Bad idea. That needs to not happen like, now. And Obie has to go.” He parted from Steve and pulled out his phone, pressing a button on the side. “JARVIS, start pulling records on everyone employed by Stark Industries, see if you can find out who Obie might have in his pocket. Looks like I need to do a little spring cleaning.” 

“Yes, sir,” JARVIS replied politely, startling Steve.

“What the hell is that?” Steve asked, and Tony grinned.

“JARVIS. He’s an AI — artificial intelligence. I made him this summer, isn’t he awesome? He pretty much runs everything now.” Steve blinked, shaking his head. He didn’t want to know.

“Very cool,” he agreed. “So, uh, you’re not mad at me for getting treatment from Stark Industries without asking you first?” Tony looked up from where he was obviously plotting, looking perplexed.

“Why would I be mad at you, Steve? You thought it was legit. I’m not your doctor. Besides, while I don’t appreciate Obie going behind my back with my own company, I definitely appreciate him getting you cured of the Hydra degeneration. This place would have been way less awesome without you around.” Steve didn’t know what to feel when Tony made blunt statements like that. “Speaking of, how did you forget to mention for nearly two years that you were becoming a squib?” he asked sharply, turning on Steve with raised eyebrows. Steve sighed, frowning.

“I didn’t want to worry everyone. And… I spent a lot of time in denial about it,” he admitted. Tony rolled his eyes, punching him on the shoulder.

“Next time, worry me, yeah? Hell, two years, I could’ve come up with a cure myself. Or Bruce could’ve. Potions is more his thing than mine.” Steve felt an odd jarring sensation at the mention of the quiet Ravenclaw boy that Tony was possibly-probably dating. He didn’t know what was going on with them, but he knew Bruce probably wouldn’t appreciate his boyfriend hanging out in a locked classroom with Steve, especially the way he looked now. 

“Won’t he be wondering where you are?” he asked, making Tony cock his head.

“Bruce? Nah, he knows I’m with you, he won’t wait up. But if I have to start planning a corporate takeover, I should probably attempt to get some sleep now before the crazy begins. Also, I don’t want Bucky thinking I kidnapped you for experiments or something,” he added with a grin, making Steve laugh. With a wave of his hand, Tony unlocked the classroom door, and they started the walk up the stairs together. “So how was your summer, anyway? Besides the whole super-serum thing?” Steve shrugged, falling into step beside Tony.

“Pretty good, all things considered. Fairly quiet, nothing special. How about you? Invent anything fun other than JARVIS?” Tony beamed, launching into a science-filled description of the projects he’d been working on that went straight over Steve’s head. The blonde didn’t complain, though; he liked listening to Tony when he talked about the things he enjoyed, even if he didn’t understand it. It was a little glimpse into how the genius’ brain was ticking, and it made him feel just that little bit special that he got to listen to it.

“Ooh, hey, that Yule Ball thing, cool huh? Gonna ask some pretty young lady or dashing gentleman?” Tony teased, the change in subject abrupt. Steve blushed, shaking his head.

“Me asking someone to dance, you kidding me? Nah, I think I’ll just go stag. You’re probably asking Bruce, right?” he presumed, though Tony shrugged.

“Depends what other offers come up,” he replied, smirking. Steve didn’t even try and make sense of that, and they stopped when they reached the seventh floor. “Well, this is me. G’night, blondie.” Tony offered a wave, already turning down the corridor to Ravenclaw Tower. 

“Night, Tony. And thanks for listening.” Tony flashed him a quick smile, and Steve headed in the opposite direction, knowing Bucky would still be up in Gryffindor, probably waiting for permission to beat Tony up. Steve longed for the day those two actually got along. 

The smile stayed on his face until he got back to the common room and was the subject of intense staring once more, but even the attention couldn’t shake his relief that Tony wasn’t behind Stane’s actions.


	3. Nesting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint, Phil and Natasha gather in the first week back to get the gossip on the rest of their friends. Sadly, the rumour mill is fairly lacking.

The room had been Tony’s find, surprisingly. No one asked why he’d been pacing in that particular corridor, but as his mind was usually focused on needing something or somewhere, it was no surprise at all that the door had appeared for him, giving him access to a lab that could not be more perfect for the experiment he was planning. He’d immediately rushed back out to find Bruce, only to find the door gone when he returned. The pair being scientists, it hadn’t taken long for them to figure out how to work the room, and they’d shared the secret among their close friends. When Clint had asked the house elves, they’d named it the Come and Go Room, or the Room of Requirement, and it stuck. 

That had been halfway through his fourth year, and since then it had become the most popular hangout for their group. Currently, it was being used by Clint, Phil and Tasha, and took the form of a cozy common room in which they could chat without worrying about eavesdroppers in their respective common rooms. Clint didn’t admit to being the impetus behind the nest-like structure of pillows and blankets in the centre of the room, but there was no doubt it had come from his mind. Phil and Tasha didn’t complain, however, the three of them curling up comfortably in the nest. Clint was practically lying on top of his boyfriend, having spent the whole summer apart from him, and Natasha rolled her eyes in amusement. They’d been practically inseparable in the week since school had started back. “How was your summer, Tasha?” Phil queried, fingers absently carding through Clint’s hair.

“Fairly boring,” she replied with a shrug, digging her socked feet under Clint’s thigh for warmth. “Training, avoiding my parents’ formal functions, the occasional espionage mission to stop me getting bored. Visited Pepper for a week.” Phil snorted; only for Tasha would that be a ‘boring’ summer. 

“Pepper’s parents are great, aren’t they?” he said with a grin, having spent time at the redhead’s house the summer after first year. She’d been one of the only people who he’d actually considered a friend, and her being in Hufflepuff with him was just a bonus. Natasha smiled, nodding.

“Yeah, but I don’t think her dad likes me too much. I think he’s met my father,” she added wryly, making Clint snicker. 

“Then I don’t blame him in the slightest,” he replied, dodging the playful kick she aimed at him. 

“Have either of you spoken to Steve since we got back?” Phil asked abruptly, and the two younger teens shared a look. Steve’s ‘growth spurt’ was the only thing half the school could talk about, and as a result the blonde was even more withdrawn than usual. Phil didn’t blame him; whenever he left Gryffindor tower, he was surrounded by flirtatious girls and whispers of gossip. The general rumour was steroid potions, or one of Tony Stark’s experiments gone wrong, but they all knew that Tony would never experiment on his friends, especially Steve. A blind man could see the soft spot the Stark heir had for the Gryffindor. Besides, if it had been Tony’s fault, he would have told them.

“Only a little in class, but not about, y’know,” Clint replied, shifting a little as his arm started to go numb. “I’m hoping he’ll be back to his usual self once people start leaving him alone. And if they don’t start leaving him alone soon, I’m gonna have to start hiding in rafters and shooting the bastards who keep crowding him,” he added vindictively. Phil chuckled, kissing his boyfriend’s temple. 

“No permanent injuries,” he warned.

“Only for repeat offenders,” Clint argued, smirking. Natasha snickered, pulling a knife from her wrist holster and absently spinning it.

“Occasionally, Barton, you have some good ideas. I might join you on that. And I’ll talk to Pepper, see if she can rope the boys into tightening the security around Steve a little. Just until this crap dies down. Then he might actually be comfortable telling us what the hell happened,” she mused, tossing the knife up before catching it. 

“Tony knows,” Clint pointed out, and Phil raised an eyebrow.

“What makes you say that?” he asked. Clint shrugged, turning his head to meet the older boy’s eyes.

“You really think Stark would let that lie?” he retorted. “Besides, I saw them sneaking off together the first night back after the feast. No way they didn’t talk about it then. I’ll bet Bucky knows, too, but he’s even less likely to spill than Stark.” Phil hummed in agreement, feeling a little drowsy in the warmth of the room, and Clint’s embrace.

“If it were anything to worry about, he’d have told us by now,” Natasha said, sounding sure of herself. “I’m sure it’s fine. We’ll find out soon enough.” 

“Yeah, Steve sucks at keeping secrets,” Clint added fondly. Phil glanced up at the clock, then looked over to Natasha.

“You’d better get going,” he said, looking at both of them. “Or you’ll be caught out after curfew.” Natasha snorted, giving him a pointed look.

“Phil, when have Clint and I ever been caught at _anything_?” she asked, smug.

“And I can just walk back with you, and then it’ll be totally fine as I’ll be with a _prefect_ ,” Clint teased, flicking the shiny badge pinned to Phil’s jumper. The older Hufflepuff blushed, but didn’t let it affect him.

“Still, Tasha should head back to Slytherin, just in case. I don’t want you in detention this early in the term,” he insisted. Clint scoffed; he’d already had two. Tasha merely smiled knowingly, uncurling and getting to her feet easily despite the uneven surface of pillows beneath her.

“If you wanted to be alone with bird-brains, you only had to ask,” she said sweetly, leaning over to kiss first Phil’s head, then Clint’s. “You boys have fun now. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Before they could respond, she slunk from the room, leaving the two boys with burning red cheeks.

“Is she right?” Clint asked mock-coyly. “You just wanted to be alone with me?” Now his friend was gone, he felt comfortable shifting to lie chest-to-chest with Phil, the position far more intimate. The older boy smirked, tilting his head for a kiss. 

“Well, that’s definitely part of my reasoning,” he agreed, hand sliding up the back of Clint’s shirt to rub the base of his spine with his thumb, knowing it drove the blonde insane. Clint groaned lowly, arching into the touch. 

“Damn, I’ve missed you baby,” he murmured, bringing their lips together. Phil parted his lips willingly, holding Clint tight against him, and smirked when they parted.

“What’ve I told you about calling me ‘baby’?” he scolded, voice low as Clint’s fingers tangled in his hair, knees gripping either side of Phil’s thighs. The younger teen smirked, free hand fiddling with Phil’s tie in order to reach the pale column of his neck. 

“C’mon, _baby_ ,” he breathed, sucking a dark bruise just below his boyfriend’s jaw, smirk widening when Phil predictably jerked at the touch, letting out a keening moan. “You know you love it.” He pulled back, smoothing a hand down the front of Phil’s jumper, before reaching to tap the black P in the centre of Phil’s badge, grinning. “My man the prefect. Knew it would be you,” he insisted, making Phil smile. 

“You do know this means I have an obligation to report you when you’re sneaking out after hours, right?” he said, attempting seriousness and failing abysmally. Clint smiled wolfishly, dark eyes fixed on Phil’s.

“Yeah, but you won’t,” he said knowingly, pushing Phil’s jumper and shirt up in one go, fingertips skating over his abs and making him shudder. “I’ll miss our evenings together, though,” he added with a frown. Phil raised an eyebrow, cupping Clint’s jaw to pull him close. 

“I won’t be on duty every evening,” he assured, pressing butterfly kisses across the arch of Clint’s cheeks, trailing down his jawline. “I’ll still have plenty of time for you.” Clint snorted, rolling his eyes.

“You really telling me that if some firstie in distress knocks on your door when I’m with you, you’ll tell them to fuck off as you’re off duty?” he asked with raised eyebrows, watching Phil flush.

“Well, no, but—“ Clint cut him off with a kiss, smiling against his lips. 

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve been prepared for this for ages; like I said, I knew you’d make prefect. And you wouldn’t be you if you weren’t willing to help all the damn time,” he added, tone fond. Phil smiled, abashed, and shifted a little so they were on their sides, facing each other.

“We should take this back to the common room,” he murmured, attempting to smooth Clint’s hair down where he’d ruffled it. They’d be doing the walk of shame enough without turning up at Hufflepuff looking like they’d been having sex in an alcove somewhere. Clint whined in protest, knee slipping between Phil’s.

“Do we _have_ to?” he asked, trying to look as seductive as possible. “Why can’t we just stay here all night, get in a little alone time?”

“Because we have class tomorrow,” Phil protested, attempting to sit up despite Clint’s weight on him. “And we don’t have clothes with us here.” Clint pouted, allowing himself to be dragged to his feet.

“Fine, he grumbled, rolling his eyes. “My room or yours?” Phil pondered the question, clambering out of the nest and shouldering his schoolbag. 

“Mine,” he said eventually. His roommates would probably be asleep already, and were less likely to tease them for coming in past curfew than Clint’s. Rhodey hadn’t let them live it down the last time they’d come in late and dishevelled. 

“Fine by me,” Clint agreed, hand slipping into Phil’s as they left the room, trying to stay as silent as possible. If word got out that Phil was abusing his prefect privileges to stay out late with his boyfriend, he’d be in deep shit with Fury. Still, the older boy smiled to himself as they headed back to Hufflepuff, liking how it wasn’t even a question that they’d sleep in the same bed by now. It wasn’t even a sexual thing really; Clint got nightmares a lot, and he slept easier with someone he trusted close by. Phil was just happy to have earned that trust.

He glanced sideways, seeing Clint on high-alert for teachers and other prefects as they walked, his eyes sharp even as his hand was relaxed in Phil’s. He smiled to himself, squeezing briefly. He hadn’t expected to ever fall so hard for a guy like Clint — so unlike all the dream partners he’d imagined for himself as soon as he’d started wanting to date, so unlike _anyone_ he could possibly imagine — but he honestly wouldn’t change a thing.


	4. Taking Control

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony gets the ball rolling to kick Obadiah out of Stark Industries, and is surprised at the amount of helping hands he gets.

It wasn’t often their entire group gathered in the Room at the same time, but after a very vague text from Tony, they obediently assembled. Steve had an idea of what it was about, which was confirmed when he arrived with Bucky and Peggy to find Tony pacing the room in front of a huge whiteboard covered in messy writing and pieces of paper, muttering to himself — no, Steve realised; muttering to JARVIS. 

“Do we finally get to find out how Sasquatch over there came to be?” Clint asked wryly, jerking a thumb at the blonde Gryffindor, who blushed. Tony looked up, realising they were all there. 

“Hey, you showed, awesome,” he said, sounding faintly surprised. “Yeah, this meeting would probably make more sense if Steve let you all know what went on. No pressure or anything, blondie.” He gave Steve a brief apologetic look, but the younger boy rolled his eyes. He’d been meaning to tell everyone soon, anyway. 

With the attention of the whole room focused on him, Steve explained what had happened to him, not letting anyone interrupt until he was finished. Peggy looked horrified when he spoke about the Hydra gene diagnosis, and Pepper’s eyes were sharp through his retelling of the serum injection process, jotting things down in her notebook. 

“Damn, Steve…” Clint murmured, frown on his face. 

“I think I speak for all of us when I say that despite the circumstances, I’m really glad you got the serum,” Bruce said softly, offering Steve a tentative smile. Steve grinned back, touched when everyone else nodded firmly.

“This does, however, bring some complications around,” Tony declared, bringing the attention back on him, for which Steve was grateful. “Yeah, the only dose of the serum went into Steve’s ridiculously muscled body, but the fact that Obie was even running the experiment at all is really, really not okay. He’s supposed to get me to authorise any new research or experiment before it goes ahead, and if he didn’t tell me about this one, what else is he doing behind my back?” His smile was grim, and Thor frowned.

“But the company is yours, is it not? How can he do such treachery?” he asked, perplexed. Tony snorted quietly, shaking his head.

“Yes, the company is mine, but it’s in Obie’s care while I’m underage and at school. And that definitely has to change, which is where you guys come in. As of today, I will officially be working to gain complete control of Stark Industries, and have Obie arrested and out of my hair.” Rhodey cursed, letting out a low whistle.

“Damn, Tony, I’m sorry man,” he started, squeezing Tony’s shoulder. Obviously he was the only one of them who knew just how prominent a figure Obie had been in Tony’s life, and how much it hurt that he’d turned on him.

“What do you need us to do?” Jane asked, unwavering. Tony looked up, seeing his friends with determined expressions, and tried not to let his shock show. How did he have so many awesome people willing to help him?

“I, uh, wasn’t expecting you to do much other than get class notes for me and occasionally bring me food so I don’t starve to death. I probably won’t be turning up to class much until I finish this, so I figured I should let you all know,” he said with a shrug. Pepper rolled her eyes, smacking his shoulder.

“I already told you, Tony; all of us are willing to help in whatever way you need us to, even if it’s just sorting through files. It’ll go faster if you let us help you,” she said matter-of-factly. The others nodded, all looking willing to help, and Tony’s eyebrows rose.

“Seriously? You do realise you totally don’t have to do this, right? I can handle this.”

“Shut up, Stark, and let us help you,” Phil told him, earning a grin from Pepper. Bruce rested a hand on Tony’s back, rubbing gently at the spot between his shoulder blades.

“I told you this would happen,” he murmured, smiling. “That’s what you get when you make friends. So just let people help and don’t argue.” Tony sighed, forehead falling to Bruce’s shoulder briefly.

“Fine, sure, it’s your time, whatever,” he relented, not seeing Bruce and Pepper share a smug grin of triumph. “JARVIS has printed off the files of anyone likely to be in Obie’s pocket, and he’s currently checking through company records for anything that looks out of place. These get printed out here,” he said, patting a large industrial printer that was happily churning out papers while they spoke. “If you could all just look through those for things that don’t match up — expenses that aren’t accounted for, extra staff where there shouldn’t be, strange acquisitions, whatever — that would be ridiculously helpful. Pepper, Bruce and Rhodey are in charge, as they know how Stark Industries runs better than anyone in this room. Except, y’know, me.”

“If we’re going to be doing this, we’re going to need coffee. Lots of it,” Bucky pointed out, glancing around. The one downside to the Room was its inability to conjure food and drink. “Tasha, care to accompany me to the kitchens?” The lone Slytherin in their group smirked, nodding. 

“Could you, uh, get some tea as well, please? I don’t drink coffee,” Bruce requested politely. Natasha offered him a smile, nodding.

“Of course; I’m sure others would prefer tea, too.” Her and Bucky left, and Tony and Bruce dragged out several stacks of files, smirking when Pepper began to distribute them between the group. 

“I really can’t thank you guys enough for this,” Tony started. “You don’t have to help if you don’t want to. I can do it all alone, it’ll just take longer, but I don’t want to feel like I’m forcing you into anything.”

“Stop arguing and let us help you, Tony,” Steve said, a smile on his face. “I can’t promise to be all that helpful, but hey, an extra set of eyes is better than nothing.” Tony grinned at him, setting a stack of paper in front of Darcy, who had pulled her glasses from her bag and already had a quill in hand. The Room provided enough desks and chairs for them to all have one, and when they each settled down to start scouring the Stark Industries records, Tony went back to his whiteboard and JARVIS, obviously dealing with the parts that only he could. The spring in his step was noticeable, though, as were Pepper and Bruce’s proud smiles every time they looked over the assembled teens checking numbers and writing things down. Yeah, Tony had picked some damn good friends.

.-.-.

They very quickly fell into a system, working surprisingly efficiently together. Any files with suspicious things in them were given straight to Pepper, Rhodey or Bruce, who figured out exactly what was wrong and relayed it to Tony. They each took turns getting food and refreshments, attending classes on shift so there was always someone to get class notes for everyone else — Darcy got out of it, assuring that Loki had promised to lend her his class notes — and alternated the night-shift so Tony always had someone staying with him. The billionaire had yet again decided that sleep was for the weak, though the combined efforts of Bruce and Pepper meant he got at least four hours a day. Steve worried that it wasn’t enough, but Tony insisted he went with far less sleep during most of his engineering binges. The only time those shifts were altered was due to prefect patrols; which, when six out of the eight prefects in their year were in their group, happened far more often than they’d like. Hufflepuff shifts were the worst, when both Pepper and Phil were gone; two of their most organised people when it came to paperwork.

It took them two weeks of hard work and making excuses to teachers, but since none of them were falling behind in class and they all still did their homework, the Hogwarts staff seemed to have declared it ‘weird shit Tony Stark and his friends do’ and left them to it. But looking for traces of Obie’s betrayal in the paperwork was easier than a lot of them had expected it to be, once they learned what to look for. Thor, surprisingly, was one of the best at it, reminding them all that he was being groomed to take over his own family business. And Rhodey had contacted his father to start snooping around for gossip, as well as alert several trustworthy members of SI staff to be on alert; the regular owls coming in with letters full of information had been crucial to them working through all the files with the speed they had. 

Eventually, Tony walked up to Headmaster Fury’s office, armed with an enormous folder full of evidence, and a determined expression. It was easy for him to get permission to leave for the weekend on business matters, though he wished he could’ve taken at least one of his friends with him. They were all taking advantage of the time to catch up on sleep and homework — and other things, if the looks between both Clint and Phil, and Pepper and Natasha were anything to go by. Thor and Jane had annoyed everyone by being sappily adorable during the work, so were less in need of alone time.

After a long weekend of rest and recuperation, in which Tony’s phone was flooded with far more texts than he had anticipated, he finally returned late Sunday night. Clint was the first one to see him, having been hanging from the rafters in the corridor outside Fury’s office, and between them they rounded up the rest of the group, heading for the Room. It was well past curfew, but none of them cared, gathering in their secret room in pyjamas and dressing gowns, looking very out of place next to Tony in his designer suit. “Oh, Merlin, I’ve had a really shitty weekend,” Tony declared, resting his head against Bruce’s back and letting his eyes fall shut.

“Sleep later, Stark. Tell us what happened,” Tasha urged, reaching over to poke him in the side. He jolted, glaring at her, but sat up and grinned smugly.

“As of about five hours ago, Stark Industries is officially completely mine — I had to get emancipated and a load of other boring stuff at Gringotts to make me eligible since I’m underage, but whatever. And Obie is now in custody at the Ministry, awaiting trial for corporate fraud, embezzlement and a bunch of other stuff. So hey, win-win. Also, as the owner and CEO of a multi-billion galleon company, I need a PA. Pepper, honeybunch, I need you to sign some stuff so I can hire you, ‘kay?” He shut his eyes briefly, and the Room provided a large bed just behind him. He grinned, toeing off his shoes and stripping his jacket, tie and shirt, crawling onto the bed in just his trousers and undershirt. 

“What? Tony, don’t be ridiculous. Is that even legal?” Pepper asked, stunned. He shrugged, turning to un-bury his face from the pillow so he could be heard.

“Sure, totally legal. Think of it this way; you sign it and I’ll be paying you an obscene amount of money to do what you’re already doing for free,” he pointed out, making her snicker.

“Well, how can I refuse that?” she replied wryly. He grinned, kicking the duvet down to his knees.

“Excellent. Now I’m gonna sleep, so you guys can either join me or go back to bed. Bruce, you don’t get a choice in that; get in,” the genius ordered, making Bruce snort. Still, he obliged, kicking off his shoes and leaving his dressing gown on top of Tony’s suit, clambering onto the bed and allowing Tony to latch onto him like a teddy bear. Steve shifted awkwardly, and noticed he wasn’t the only one uncomfortable with watching the pair cuddle. It seemed certain that they were together when they acted like that, but… he just didn’t know. “I meant it about joining me,” Tony piped up, cracking one eye open to stare at them all. “This bed is big enough for like, twenty people. And common rooms are really far away.” The bed grew even bigger in invitation, and Pepper sighed, rolling her eyes but obligingly getting into the bed, curling up on Tony’s other side. That seemed to be all Natasha needed, tucking herself neatly against Pepper’s back, and one by one they all ended up on the bed, pillows and blankets appearing as needed. Tony was in the centre of the huddle, his head on Bruce’s chest and one arm slung over Pepper, leg stretching out to rest on Clint’s shoulder as the archer lay intertwined with Phil, whose back was pressed against Rhodey’s. Steve was on Bruce’s other side, one of the Ravenclaw’s arms curled protectively around him, Bucky’s head pillowed on his left thigh and Peggy somewhere below his feet. Sif was curled up in the middle of Hogun, Fandral and Volstagg, with Thor by their side with Jane in his arms. Darcy had somehow wormed her way between Steve and Bucky, and Steve was pretty sure her hand resting on his abs was completely intentional. He didn’t really mind, though; he could hardly talk, with his hand gently gripping Tony’s calf. 

It was hard to tell who fell asleep first, and they weren’t in the same positions when they woke up — there was the awkward moment of Tony having to explain how he’d ended up on top of Bruce and rolling over to his other side, wedged between Bruce and Steve, and Thor somehow woke with his leg trapped under Volstagg’s shoulders, which didn’t look comfortable — but none of them could say that they hadn’t slept well. Nor did any of them make morning lessons, barely waking up in time for lunch, and it was a testament to how strange they usually acted that not a single person who saw them in the halls on their way back to their common room batted an eyelash at the group of them, sleepy and pyjama-clad, wandering like zombies back to their own respective beds. Or Bruce’s bed, in Tony’s case, who still needed even more sleep; he just hoped he didn’t regret taking on full control of Stark Industries during his OWL year. He never could do things the easy way.


	5. Seeking Success

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha tries out for the Slytherin quidditch team, unbeknownst to the rest of her friends. All except one, that is.

Natasha Romanoff would never admit to being nervous, ever. But she came _very_ close stood on the quidditch pitch in a set of Slytherin practice robes, a white-knuckled grip on her broom as she waited for her name to be called. It was the one time she was glad none of her friends were in Slytherin with her; they had no idea it was quidditch trials day, or that she was planning on trying out for the seeker position. She was friends with the seekers on all three other house teams, she didn’t want them knowing that she might end up their competition. They’d try and give her tips and advice, and she didn’t know if that would be helpful. Besides, she wanted to get the spot on her own merit.

“Romanoff, Black, you’re up!” Maria Hill, the team captain called. Natasha liked her; she was also a prefect, and was one of the more diplomatic members of Slytherin house. She was also sort-of friends with Phil, though they didn’t talk much outside of class. Tasha stepped forward, mounting her broom and kicking off, flying a lap before getting into position opposite the sixth year boy she was competing against. They’d already been put through their paces on their brooms, and there were only four seeker candidates left after that. All she had to do was catch the snitch before this guy, and she’d be in with a chance.

She watched with sharp eyes as the snitch was released from Hill’s hand, and the hunt was on. It disappeared almost immediately, so she flew through the chaser tryouts, and the beater tryouts, keeping her eyes peeled for the slightest flash of gold. Ducking a stray bludger with ease, Tasha made a sharp turn, scouring the sky for any sign of the snitch. Her opponent was trailing her, obviously trying the lazy-man’s strategy of allowing the other seeker to find the snitch and then racing them to it. She smirked to herself; that was never a good idea. Jerking her broom sharply, she dove down as if she’d spotted the snitch; predictably, Black followed her. She held the dive for as long as she could, pulling out only at the last moment. She would’ve hung back a little to see whether he’d fallen for her trick, but she saw a glint out of the corner of her eye and hared after it.

Annoyingly, Black had been able to pull out of the dive before he hit the grass, but he was lagging far behind her, and seemed to think she was tricking him once more. Tasha grinned triumphantly as she grew closer to the fluttering golden ball, stretching out as far as she could without overbalancing, and couldn’t hold back the pleased exclamation as her fingers closed around the snitch. She heard Black curse, but didn’t pay much attention, turning to fly over to an impressed-looking Hill, depositing the snitch in her hands. “Not bad, Romanoff,” she remarked, making Natasha smirk.

“I try.” Hill matched her smirk, giving her an appraising look.

“You’re friends with the other three seekers, right? Best friends with Barton, dating Stark’s PA?” she asked, and Tasha nodded.

“And friends with Sif, yes. That gonna be a problem?” Hill’s smirk widened as she shook her head, pocketing the snitch.

“Not unless you make it one. A little friendly competition is good for the soul,” she replied, making Natasha snort. 

“Something like that.” Turning sharply, she ignored the sixth year’s glares as she rejoined him and the two other seeker hopefuls on the pitch. Now all they could do was wait for Hill to speak with the rest of the team. Natasha shouldered her broom, turning to watch the chaser hopefuls ducking and weaving through each other, passing the quaffle with ease under the watchful eyes of the one established member of the team. Hill was also a chaser, but was too busy surveying the beaters. Luckily, they all wrapped up pretty quickly, and the four players that were already on the team converged for a discussion. Tasha tried not to eavesdrop on them, shifting from foot to foot impatiently. Eventually, the team parted, and Hill stepped forward.

“Thank you all for coming. All of you are excellent quidditch players, though as you know we only have one spot per position left on the team. Our new chaser is Mr Maxwell, congratulations. Mr Rookwood, you’re our new beater. And the seeker position goes to Miss Romanoff.” Natasha zoned out the rest of Hill’s words, stunned. She’d made it. She was the Slytherin seeker. Her opponents grudgingly congratulated her, shaking her hand, and Tasha dazedly started off back up to the castle, wondering how she could break it to her friends. She’d have to tell them soon; they’d notice her going for practices. 

She walked alone out of the quidditch stadium, and nearly had a heart attack when Clint seemingly dropped from the sky, landing by her side with a knowing smirk on his face. “Shit!” she exclaimed, thumping his shoulder. “Do that again and I’ll kill you! Where did you even come from?” Clint just pointed vaguely upward, still looking smug.

“So I hear congratulations are in order,” he drawled. “You were great out there. Definitely the best choice by far.” Natasha glared at him, resisting the urge to hit him on the head with her broomstick. 

“You were _watching_?” she hissed, feeling her cheeks turn red. “Why? How did you even know the trials were today?” It was a Saturday; Clint usually spent Saturday mornings in bed with Phil.

“My dear Tasha, I know everything,” he informed her, winking. “I keep an eye on these things, y’know, and when I heard you’d signed up for seeker trials I couldn’t not come watch you. Looks like the season’s gonna be interesting this year. Your first match is against Ravenclaw, right?” She nodded, having checked the schedule.

“Yeah, but you play Gryffindor before that.” Clint nodded, rocking on the balls of his feet as they walked.

“I can’t wait to see Tony’s face when he realises he’s up against you,” he crowed, grinning. “Ooh, what will Pepper do? Her boss versus her girlfriend, I don’t envy her. It’s bad enough watching everyone else play each other and have them be just friends.” He slung an arm around her shoulders, squeezing tightly. “I’m proud of you, you kicked their butts out there. But for the record, on the pitch? You’re going down.” She laughed, shoving him lightly.

“Yeah, not gonna happen. Better let Phil know he’s gonna need to hold you after you get your ass kicked by a girl when I play you,” she retorted, making him snicker.

“Tasha, honey, Phil’s already had to do that; Sif beat me last year. And there is no way in hell I’m letting you take me down.” He held out a fist, which she obligingly bumped.

“Oh, it’s so on, Barton.” She pushed her hair from her face, hitching her broom further up her shoulder. “How did you persuade him to give up your Saturday morning, anyway?” He smirked, a perverted look on his face.

“Do you really want to know?” Tasha snorted, shaking her head.

“No, no, please spare me. But if you want to head back to bed with him, I was gonna change and then grab some breakfast to take up to Pepper, I can get you both something.” Clint’s face lit up, and he leaned in to kiss her cheek.

“You’re awesome,” he declared, already sprinting towards the castle, practically whooping in joy at the prospect of going back to bed with his boyfriend. Tasha shook her head ruefully, an amused smile at her lips. Merlin, he was pathetic.


	6. Failure to Communicate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony realises he has feelings for Steve, and sets about trying to win his heart. A little difficult when Steve thinks Tony is dating Bruce.

Tony looked up at Bruce, who had his nose buried in a book. “Hey, sugarplum? You know I love you in a totally non-romantic way, right? And we have fantastic awesome sex, like, a lot?” Because Bruce’s wolf was really becoming insatiable, and Tony was totally not going to argue with that.

“Hmm?” Bruce queried, setting his book down. They were both on Tony’s bed, Tony resting his head on Bruce’s stomach. 

“I, uh, think that might have to stop soon,” Tony admitted reluctantly. Bruce tried not to smirk, giving his friend an expectant look. Tony sat up, shifting until he was cross-legged opposite the werewolf. “I like someone.”

“If you want to ask Steve out, that’s fine by me, Tony,” Bruce told him wryly, looking amused. Tony spluttered, going red.

“Whoa, back up, who mentioned Steve? No one said anything about Steve,” he denied quickly, making Bruce snicker.

“Come on, Tony. I know you better than you know you, I’ve seen the way you look at him, and I can smell how you feel around him, even before he had the serum. I saw this coming a mile off. I’m happy for you, really.” Tony frowned, shuffling across the bed and tucking himself under Bruce’s arm.

“Okay, so yeah, I really want to ask Steve out. But he’ll probably say no, so y’know, whatever. Are you sure you’ll be okay? I don’t want you getting all wolf-rage-y on everyone because you can’t get that itch scratched,” he fretted, allowing Bruce to inhale the scent of his hair with a smile. He hoped that if Steve did say yes to him, he wouldn’t mind Tony and Bruce still cuddling, because he liked cuddling with Bruce. 

“I’ll be fine, I promise. I have two perfectly good hands, and if it comes down to it I’ll find someone else to scratch that itch,” he assured, hand stroking up and down Tony’s arm. “And I can’t see Steve saying no to you. He’s been smitten for you for months, I just don’t think he realises it.” Tony looked hopeful at that, cracking a tentative smile.

“You’re the best,” he murmured, leaning up to press a kiss to his friend’s lips. “Like, seriously, better than I deserve. And having sex with you has been really, really great. Best summer ever.” Bruce’s mother had practically jumped at the chance when Tony had asked Bruce to stay with him the entire summer. It had been eight weeks of near non-stop science and sex, and Tony would always cherish it. 

“Having sex with you has been awesome too, Tony. Thank you for letting me do this with someone I can trust,” Bruce murmured, stroking Tony’s jaw with his thumb. Tony snorted, giving Bruce a look.

“You make it sound like I just lie back and take it,” he teased, shifting to knock Bruce’s book to the floor, straddling his hips. “One more time for prosperity?” Bruce laughed, shaking his head even as he allowed Tony to pull him into a kiss.

“Sure, Tony. One more time for luck. Then I’ll pass you over to your blonde boy-toy, you can be his problem,” he joked, dodging the swat Tony aimed his way.

“Smart-ass.” He accentuated his words with a pinch to Bruce’s butt-cheek, unsurprised when Bruce flipped them over and pinned him to the bed with his werewolf strength, grinning playfully. Damn, Tony was going to miss this. Steve would be worth it, though.

.-.-.

His ‘friends with benefits’ arrangement officially over, Tony set about seeking Steve out. It wasn’t that hard to find him; it was too cold for him to be drawing by the lake, which meant he’d usually be wherever the hell Bucky was, in Gryffindor, or using the Room of Requirement as his own personal art studio. Tony was always reluctant to interrupt him when he was drawing, though he wished he could just sit and watch. It always amazed him how Steve could create something so beautiful with just some pencils and a piece of paper. 

He caught Steve on his way to the library after dinner, falling into step beside him with a grin. “Hey, how’s it going?” he asked casually. Steve smiled at him, running a hand through his hair. 

“Not bad; things are starting to die down a lot more now. I can pretty much wander round without being bothered,” he replied, pleased.

“Good, good. Hey, did you hear Tasha made Slytherin seeker?” he told the younger boy, smirking. “I get to play against her before any of the others. It’s gonna be awesome.”

“Yeah, I heard from Pepper the other day. Good for Tasha; I bet she’ll be great. Sif’s looking forward to the challenge,” Steve added. “I was thinking about trying out myself, y’know? The keeper position is open, and… quidditch was always one of those things I was never allowed to do before. I think it could be fun, and I’ve been practicing with Bucky. He says I’m pretty good.” Tony grinned, clapping Steve on the arm in an attempt to get rid of the nervous expression on the Gryffindor’s face.

“You should totally try out; it’d be awesome if you made the team. And not just because you’d look hot in quidditch robes, I think you’d be great. Though you can’t be too great, because Ravenclaw need to win the cup this year, okay?” Steve laughed, making Tony wonder if his comment about hotness had been missed. 

“No promises on that, you guys won it last year. Maybe it’s our turn, huh?” he nudged Tony lightly, and Tony rolled his eyes.

“Excuses, excuses. You’re too fair for your own good, honeybear. Oh, hey, did you need any help with, uh, whatever you’re here for?” he queried as they arrived in the library. Steve shook his head, making a beeline for the Charms section.

“Nah, I’m good on this, though thanks for the offer. Did you have any work to do? I thought you’d caught up after the two weeks out.” Steve frowned in concern, which Tony waved off with a lazy grin.

“Oh, I have, I’m good. No, I just wanted to talk to you, see how you were doing. You’ve been kinda quiet since you got back, y’know?” Tony perched on the edge of the table Steve dumped his bag on, and the blonde shrugged sheepishly.

“Still getting used to all this,” he admitted. “Now we’re not all too busy to care, I guess I’m worried you guys might find it… weird?” Tony raised an eyebrow at him, reaching out impulsively to squeeze Steve’s hand.

“Steve, listen, the rest of the school might be assholes who gawk at every new or different thing, but we’re your friends, and I can guarantee none of us think this is weird. As far as we’re concerned, you’re exactly the same Steve Rogers you were at the end of last year, just a little less likely to be snapped in half by a strong wind. We miss you hanging out with us. Hell, I miss hanging out with everyone; even if we were plotting corporate takeover, it was kinda nice having everyone together regularly. We should make a night for that, or something,” he added, pausing in thought before remembering he was halfway through reassuring Steve. “Anyway, my point is, you’re not getting rid of us that easily. Especially not me,” he added with a bright grin. “So suck it up, and come hang with Bruce and me when we science tomorrow.”

“I keep telling you, Tony, science is not a verb,” Steve remarked, amused, and Tony knew he’d gotten to him. Perfect. 

“It should be,” he insisted vehemently. “So you in, or what? There’s going to be potions, so probably explosions, you’ll love it.”

“I won’t be intruding?” Steve asked in trepidation. Tony shook his head at the ridiculous question.

“Don’t be stupid, of course not. Bruce misses you too. Now I’m going to leave you to do your homework because I’m really good at being distracting but not so good at being a helpful homework-doing environment, so I’ll see you tomorrow for science and fun. Promise?” He held out a fist, making Steve chuckle as he bumped it.

“Promise.” Tony beamed, leaning in to hug him around the shoulders.

“Excellent. Have fun doing homework, blondie-bear.” Before Steve could question the new nickname, Tony was gone, already thinking of the best way to flirt with Steve. So many people seemed to think he was brilliant at flirting, and should have no problem getting anyone he wanted, but that was only the case with friends. Playful flirting came second nature to him, but flirting when he actually meant it usually became a disaster quickly. Thus, the need for careful planning.

.-.-.

Steve stretched out on the couch in the Gryffindor common room, his legs hanging off the edge. It was late, and he and Peggy were the last ones up. Bucky had gone to bed half an hour ago, but Steve was restless and Peggy seemed to have a never-ending essay to finish. “Honestly, Steve, that’s the fifth time you’ve sighed like that in the past twenty minutes; what’s bothering you?” Steve bit his lip, trying to think up an excuse, but stopped at the look on the girl’s face and sighed once more. 

“I think Tony might be trying to cheat on Bruce. With, uh, me,” he added, feeling his cheeks turn red. Peggy frowned, lips pursing.

“What makes you say that? You know Tony’s a flirt, he’s never meant anything by it.” He nodded, brow furrowed.

“I know, but it’s different now. It’s less lewd, more… it’s kind-of adorable, actually. He’s not very good at it,” he said with a fond chuckle. Peggy’s eyes widened, and she made a knowing sound. “What? What’s that noise for?”

“How long have you fancied him, Steve?” she asked. His breath hitched, but he didn’t even bother denying it.

“A while. Merlin, since before summer. I don’t know when it started, it kinda crept up on me. But as much as I like him, I’m not going to break up a relationship. I’m not that kind of person, and to be honest I thought Tony wasn’t either.” It had been nearly two weeks, and the happy butterflies-in-stomach feeling he got when he realised Tony was actually properly flirting with him was constantly warring with his unease at the thought of what Bruce would say if he knew what his boyfriend was doing, and it was starting to make him feel sick.

“Call him out on it, then. See what he says,” Peggy suggested, but Steve bit his lip. He didn’t think Tony was even aware that Steve knew he was flirting — he was pretty good at playing oblivious — and he figured that was probably his best way of continuing. Maybe Tony would give up if he deemed it too much hard work. He explained his reasoning to Peggy, who didn’t look convinced.

“Sometimes the more direct approach is better, but if you want to try it your way first, by all means. Just…” She paused, evidently thinking out her next words carefully. “We all know you’ve changed a lot physically, Steve, and that’s going to get you a lot of attention from a lot of people you’d rather not associate with.” Steve snorted; that had already happened. Girls he’d never even spoken to before were asking him out, trying to get him to kiss them, and it was both confusing and a little bit terrifying. “Tony… I can guarantee that if he does have feelings for you — and if he does, he’s going about it the wrong way — those feelings will have been there since before you got the serum. He’s not the type to ruin a friendship just because he finds your new look attractive, I’ll say that much about him.” Steve nodded, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

“Thanks, I think. Night, Pegs.” She pressed a kiss to his cheek, hugging him around the neck somewhat awkwardly. 

“Goodnight, Steve. Keep me posted on this, and I hope to Merlin it works out well for you.” He gave her a wry smile, straightening up.

“Me too, Peggy. Me too.”

.-.-.

The first opportunity Peggy got, she cornered Bucky without Steve and let him know what was going on. She might not be his biggest fan, but he was Steve’s best friend and needed to know what was happening. Of course, it took her a day and a half to actually get to Bucky, by which time she’d done some snooping and seen first-hand what Steve was talking about. Tony was definitely flirting — badly, she’d admit, but it was clearly serious flirting. If she didn’t know better, she’d say he was trying desperately to get Steve to go out with him, but he and Bruce had all but admitted they were together… it didn’t add up.

Bucky was well aware of Steve’s feelings for Tony, though he was genuinely surprised by the flirting. “But aren’t him and Bruce a thing?” he asked, and Peggy hummed.

“That’s the problem. Steve doesn’t want to get in the way of their relationship, but… I don’t know how long he’ll be able to keep saying no to Tony before he cracks. You know what that boy’s like when he has a crush.” Both of them had been on the receiving end of said crush, and could agree that Steve was pretty pathetic when he liked someone. Saying no to him had been like kicking a puppy. 

“I’ll talk to Tony,” Bucky promised. “Maybe we all have the wrong end of the stick about him and Bruce. I mean, he is kinda cuddly with everyone.” He still had vivid memories of the puppy-pile after Tony had taken back Stark Industries; he didn’t think he’d ever slept so well in his life.

“I hope that’s the case,” Peggy agreed, not looking pleased. If Tony weren’t so damn obstinate about those sorts of things, they wouldn’t be having these problems. Bucky gave her a rueful look, getting to his feet. 

“I’d better go find Tony then, if we’re going to be having this talk,” he declared, sounding reluctant.

“Do try not to hurt him,” Peggy requested, making him smirk.

“No promises, gorgeous. I’ll see you later.” Tugging lightly on a stray curl before she could swat him away, he ducked out of the room and started off towards Tony and Bruce’s lab. Maybe if he talked to them both, he would be less likely to punch Tony, and more likely to get answers. 

Ignoring the ‘Do Not Disturb: Science Happening’ sign, he knocked, pushing the door open without waiting for acceptance. “Yes, Bucky, of course you can come in,” Tony muttered sarcastically, not looking up from whatever machine he was messing with. Bruce was brewing a potion, glancing up to offer Bucky a smile.

“Are either of the things you’re working on likely to explode if you leave them alone for ten minutes?” Bucky asked, knowing the priorities when you entered Tony Stark’s lab.

“Mine isn’t. Bruce, how about you?” Bruce stirred the contents of his cauldron, then covered it with a protective spell.

“I’m good. What’s on your mind, Bucky?” Deciding to be blunt with it, Bucky looked Tony directly in the eyes.

“Are you two an item?” he asked frankly. “Because if the answer is yes, I hate to tell you Bruce, but your boyfriend has been sniffing around elsewhere.” Far from being outraged, Bruce turned to Tony with an exasperated look.

“Oh, Merlin, Tony, I told you letting people assume would get you in trouble one day,” he groaned, shaking his head. Tony blinked, understanding dawning on his face.

“So _that’s_ why Steve isn’t flirting back with me! He thinks I’m with Bruce? Shit.”

“So… you two aren’t dating?” Bucky asked, just to clarify. Tony shook his head, looking worried.

“No, no, we never were. Tell me, how bad have I fucked up with Steve?” Bucky snorted, shrugging one shoulder.

“Right now, not irreparably bad. He thinks you’re trying to cheat on Bruce, but you haven’t actually made a move so he doesn’t hate you. I’d hurry up and let him know you’re single, though, before he decides to punch you in the face. This has really been messing him up, he likes you way more than he should.” Tony’s face lit up at that, and he got to his feet.

“I need to tell him, then. Like, now,” he said urgently, casting hurried stasis spells on his machinery.

“Whoa, whoa, not so fast, Stark,” Bucky cut in, holding out an arm to stop Tony leaving. “Why are you doing this? Because if you’re just interested now that he’s hot, then he’s better off without you.”

“What?” Tony asked, sounding disgusted. “You really think that poorly of me, Barnes? I liked Steve when he was ninety pounds soaking wet and a medical encyclopaedia of problems. Yeah, the hotness is nice, but… it’s not the part of Steve that I fell— have feelings for.” Bucky glanced over Tony’s shoulder at Bruce, both of them having caught the genius’ slip of the tongue. 

“Just checking. You break his heart, I break your face, we clear?” Tony chuckled, clapping Bucky on the shoulder.

“Crystal. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get Steve to go out with me.” He practically sprinted from the lab, and Bucky looked over at Bruce.

“He’s really serious about this, isn’t he?” he asked, surprised. Bruce nodded, picking his stirring rod back up and tending to his potion.

“Oh, yeah. He only realised his feelings recently, but… I knew. He’s been crazy about Steve since last year, if not longer. If I’d known you all thought we were dating, I would’ve cleared things up far sooner. We only let the rumours spread to keep people off our backs,” he replied, figuring Bucky didn’t need to know about the whole friends-with-benefits thing. It probably wouldn’t help Tony’s case for people to know he and Bruce had been sleeping together for months. He could tell Steve himself, if it came to that.

.-.-. 

Tony didn’t really draw any odd looks running about the castle like a madman; people were used to it by now. He wished he’d put some sort of GPS in his friends, not finding Steve in the library, the Room, or Gryffindor tower. He was close to just calling the Gryffindor’s name at random in hallways when he almost literally bumped into Peggy. “Perfect! Next best thing to the person I was looking for. Have you seen Steve?” He probably looked half-deranged, but Peggy had seen him in worse states.

“He’s out by the lake, drawing. Why?” she asked suspiciously.

“I need to go tell him I’m not dating Bruce so I can ask him to go out with me. Ask Bucky for details, thanks Peggy!” he called, already running back down the stairs.

“Hurt him and I’ll murder you, Stark!” she shouted back, voice perfectly calm as it echoed around the room. Tony smirked to himself; that was practically her blessing.

Sure enough Steve was sat on his favourite rock, the circle of melted snow around him betraying his use of a warming charm. “Steve!” Tony called, running across the snow-covered grass and wishing he’d brought a coat. “Hey, Steve, you busy?”

“Tony, what?” Steve exclaimed, eyeing him in shock. “What are you doing out here, you must be freezing!” He reached out, bringing Tony inside the warmth of his spell.

“I want to go out with you,” Tony blurted, unable to help himself. “Um, please,” he added belatedly. Steve frowned, folding his arms over his chest, sketchbook abandoned.

“Tony, look, I really like you but I can’t do that to Bruce,” he began, reminding Tony of the other thing he needed to tell the blonde. He knew there had been two things he’d meant to say.

“I’m not with Bruce,” he cut in quickly, watching as Steve’s eyes went wide. “Bruce and I were never dating. We let people think we were so girls would leave me alone. I had no idea all our friends thought we were together, too. I mean, we had sex, but it was a totally no-strings thing and he told me we could stop at any time if I wanted to have an actual relationship with someone so I think he knew about how I feel about you but he didn’t clue me in so I only stopped screwing him a little while ago when I realised that I’m crazy about you and I want you to go out with me.” He spoke a mile a minute, and Steve struggled to keep up.

“Whoa, whoa, normal-person speed, Tony,” he urged, hands gripping the Ravenclaw’s shoulders. “Let me get this right; you and Bruce were never dating, but were… friends with benefits, until you realised that you like me and stopped the arrangement and then you started flirting with me?” 

“Pretty much,” Tony confirmed, nodding. Steve stared at him for a long moment, then shook his head.

“Geez, you’re crazy,” he muttered. Tony opened his mouth to object, but Steve covered it with a hand. “I mean that in a good way. I just… I’m really glad you and Bruce aren’t together. And I don’t mind that you’ve been sleeping with him, so long as you’ve stopped. You have stopped, right?” 

“Completely. It was more a stress relief thing for reasons I’m sure Bruce will let me tell you. I keep forgetting people don’t know — we should fix that, I’ll ask him —“ Tony knew he was babbling, he always babbled when he was nervous, he couldn’t help it. “Come on, Steve, put me out of my misery here, will you go out with me or not?” Steve smiled, taking a tentative step closer.

“Thought you’d never ask,” he replied, grinning slightly deliriously, one hand resting on Tony’s waist. “That’s a yes, by the way. I will definitely go out with you.” Tony beamed, resisting the urge to fist-pump triumphantly in favour of the one to wind an arm around Steve’s neck, pulling him down into a firm kiss. Steve seemed shocked, but quickly got with the programme, and he brought his fingers to his lips when they parted. “My first kiss,” he breathed, and Tony gaped.

“Seriously? Shit, I should’ve asked first, I’m sorry,” he muttered, but Steve laughed, giving him a smile.

“It was perfect. I’m glad you didn’t ask,” he assured, pressing his forehead to Tony’s. “So are we official now?” Tony snorted, giving Steve a patient look.

“What, you mean tell the rest of Hogwarts that the most eligible man in the castle is now my boyfriend? Steve, gorgeous, I’m already thinking of the best way to announce it at dinner. Are fireworks too much?” Steve snorted, pulling Tony into another kiss, this one a lot deeper than the last.

“You’re crazy, Tony Stark,” he murmured against the Ravenclaw’s lips, feeling him smile.

“Your problem now,” he replied sweetly. “Bruce says so.”

“Does he now?” Steve asked, amused. “Guess I’d better listen to him, then.”


	7. Unwanted Emotions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loki should know better than to keep secrets from Darcy. This, however, is one thing he can't bear for her to know. Of course, she finds out anyway.

Loki tried not to look like he was paying attention as his brother flew past their area of the stands, whacking a bludger towards the Hufflepuff chaser with the quaffle, causing him to drop it as he moved to dodge frantically. “No!” Darcy exclaimed, along with several others adorned in yellow and black. “Damn it! Bad Thor!” Loki snorted despite himself, making the dark-haired girl look over at him and grin.

“Y’know, I won’t mind if you cheer for him,” she remarked. “He is your brother.”

“No he’s not,” he snapped out of habit, making her roll her eyes. “And do you really think it would be wise to cheer for Gryffindor sat here?” He was sat in the middle of the Hufflepuff stands, among a veritable sea of bright yellow. Darcy had ‘Hufflepuff Pride’ written on her face in yellow and black letters, and had spelled yellow streaks into her near-black hair. 

“Whatever, just lighten up a little, would you? You’re bringing down our mojo,” she insisted, nudging his shoulder. Loki sighed, looking back to the match, trying to pretend his eyes didn’t immediately look for long blonde hair and muscular arms. Thor was happily chasing after a bludger down by the Ravenclaw end of the stands, and Loki could see Tony Stark and Bruce Banner cheering wildly, both with Gryffindor colours painted on their faces. Of course; with Stark and Rogers now together, he was obliged to support the lions despite his many friends on the Hufflepuff team. Gryffindor scored a goal, causing a loud chorus of groans from the Hufflepuffs, but Loki barely noticed. He was too busy watching his adoptive brother celebrating, a breathless grin on his face. Merlin, he was beautiful, it pained Loki to admit. He had always noticed — it was hard not to, with people praising it everywhere they went — but as they had grown older, Thor had grown into even more of a man, looking more eighteen than fifteen. Loki couldn’t help but pay attention; he was a teenage boy, and there was no biological imperative warning him away from his brother. He was adopted, there was no blood between them.

He kept his feelings buried deep, though, knowing what kind of hell he’d go through for letting them become known. Their parents would probably disown him in disgust, Thor would finally turn away from him for good, and he’d be labelled a freak, a pervert. Even had Thor not been madly in love with Jane Foster, Loki hardly stood a chance. He was nothing special, and Thor was… everything. 

The crowd around him suddenly burst into mad cheering as Clint Barton’s fingers closed around the snitch, securing them the win — if only by twenty points; the Gryffindor chasers were strong this year, and Steve Rogers was a surprisingly adept keeper. Darcy cheered loudly, hugging him around the neck and pressing a smacking kiss to his cheek, probably smudging some of her face paint off on him. All he could see was Thor’s disappointed face, even as he congratulated the Hufflepuffs and his fellow teammates. It had been a good match, from both teams. “What is with you today?” Darcy asked, turning shrewd eyes on him. He shrugged, not meeting her gaze.

“I have a lot on my mind, is all,” he replied evasively. He’d managed to keep her off his trail thus far, and he hoped he could do so for at least a little longer. But Darcy was like a dog with a bone when she sniffed something out, and nothing would distract her from getting answers.

“Okay, that’s it, come on.” She grabbed his hand, tugging him through the crowd down to the stairs to join the rest of the people leaving the stadium, no doubt for a celebration party in Hufflepuff.

“You’re going to miss the party. Darcy, where are we going?” Loki spluttered in protest as she dragged him away from the rest of the school, towards the edge of the lake. 

“The party will be fine without me,” she assured, stopping just below the large oak tree next to the water’s edge. “Now you’re going to tell me why you’ve been so mopey since school started back. At first I was going to let you sort out your own problems, but this has gone on way too long.” Loki sighed, massaging the bridge of his nose. Of course she’d noticed.

“It’s really none of your business, Darcy, I can deal with it myself,” he began, only for her to cut him off.

“Clearly you can’t.” He resisted the urge to hex her, giving the girl a glare. Why was he friends with her again?

“It’s my own weight to bear, and I won’t bring you into this. I can’t expect you to keep secrets from him, nor Jane!” he snapped, realising too late what he’d given away. Darcy made a triumphant noise, eyes alight.

“So this is about Thor! And Jane, too? Something to do with their relationship?” she asked, frowning slightly in thought. “Ooh, did Thor cheat on her in the summer with some rich pureblood girl? Wait, no, this is Thor we’re talking about, he’d never do that.” Loki tried not to visibly wince, well aware that there was nothing that could tear him from his Lady Jane. “He’s not getting like, an arranged marriage or something, is he? You purebloods do that, right?”

“I’m not a pureblood,” Loki reminded her, somewhat harshly. “And no, he’s not been betrothed. I mean it, Darcy, don’t follow this line of questioning.”

“I’m only trying to help you, Merlin! It’s what friends are for. No need to bite my head off about it,” she grumbled, offended. “Maybe I can help, y’know? Talk to Thor or whatever so you don’t have to.”

“Don’t!” Loki blurted before he could control himself. “Don’t talk to him. Please. He mustn’t know, ever.” Darcy’s eyes widened at his vehemence, and she held up her hands placatingly.

“Okay, whoa, cool it, I won’t say anything, chill. Not that I know what I’m not meant to be saying,” she pointed out. Loki swallowed around the lump in his throat, hating how the panic had risen against his will.

“He can’t find out,” he insisted. “It would… it would ruin me. He can never know, or he’d finally realise how worthless I am to him.” He’d given away too much, clearly, for Darcy’s mouth fell into a small ‘o’ of understanding.

“Oh, baby,” she breathed, pulling him into a hug before he could argue. He struggled for a moment, but couldn’t resist the comfort and let his head fall to her shoulder, pretending his eyes weren’t stinging with tears. Merlin, he was pathetic. “He’d never find you worthless, even if he found out how you feel about him. He loves you, you know.”

“He loves me as a brother,” Loki pointed out, voice slightly hoarse. “And that is worse than him not loving me at all. These things will pass, Darcy, in time. I… I can never have him, I know that much. But it’s too painful to be around him when my own heart has betrayed me like this. I know you want me to talk to him, to spend time with Sif and the fair Warriors, and I do miss them, but… they would only ask me to talk to Thor, and that is something I cannot do. Do you understand?” He felt her nod, and she hugged him tighter.

“Of course, yeah, I totally get that. Oh, sweetie, I’m sorry, but it’s not your fault, y’know? You can’t help who you fall for, and Thor… doesn’t exactly make it easy not to like him. He’s got the whole muscles and hair and smile thing going on, it’s not fair on the rest of us mere mortals.” Loki chuckled wetly, and Darcy grinned. “There we go, that got a laugh out of you. Don’t feel bad about this, okay? He’s your adopted brother, so it’s not all weird and incest-y.” She ran her fingers through his long hair, kissing his temple. “I hope you can get past this, Loki, I really do. I don’t like seeing you sad.” He snorted lightly. Even she couldn’t see a situation in which Thor returned his feelings, evidently. He wished it were so easy to just _stop_ loving someone.

“You’re a good friend, Darcy,” he murmured. “Far better than I deserve.” She giggled, pulling back to give him a grin.

“I think that’s my decision to make, hmm?” she pointed out. “Come on, let’s go join in the party, that’ll cheer you up,” she urged, taking his hand. He sighed biting his lip.

“I think I’d rather just go back to Slytherin, if it’s all the same to you,” he replied honestly. “You go have fun with your fellow badgers, though. I’d only be reading, it would bore you.” She eyed him in concern, hand still in his as they walked back to the castle. 

“You sure? We can grab some ice cream from the kitchens and bitch about how much guys suck, if you want?” Loki laughed despite himself, lips twitching in a brief smile.

“Tempting, but I’ll pass. Thank you, though, Darcy.” He pressed a brief kiss to her cheek, making her smile.

“Anytime.” They split up in the Entrance Hall, Loki heading down to the Slytherin dorms, and as soon as he knew she couldn’t see him he let his shoulders slump once more. Honestly, he rather thought he’d be better off without stupid things like _emotions_. They were far more trouble than they were worth.


	8. Movie Night Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce finally comes clean to his friends about his furry little problem, and it goes down far better than expected.

Steve figured that most people would probably find it weird to be cuddling in a single bed with your boyfriend and your boyfriend’s best friend, but since getting together with Tony, it had become a fairly normal occurrence. He and Tony had plenty of alone time, of course — Bruce was very aware that they needed their space, to the point of being somewhat awkward in making excuses to leave them alone — but after the two Ravenclaw boys had explained to Steve Bruce’s furry little problem, as Tony liked to call it, things started slotting into place for the blonde. How Bruce spent a lot of time in the hospital wing, got a lot of headaches and occasionally became snappish and short-tempered for no reason, and was very affectionate with his close friends. Tony had told his boyfriend that Bruce needed the scent of pack around him to keep calm — and also given the reasoning behind their little friends with benefits arrangement, which Steve couldn’t really argue against especially now it had stopped — and, well, Steve kinda liked spending the occasional evening in Ravenclaw with Tony on his chest and Bruce by their side, legs all tangled together. It was relaxing.

His eyes fell half-shut as Tony’s fingers carded through his hair, feeling Bruce deeply inhaling both their scents from where his face was pressed to Steve’s shoulder. “Y’know, we should have a movie night or something,” the blonde suggested quietly, fingers tracing shapes on Tony’s back. “Get everyone together in the Room of Requirement. You were saying how you’d missed hanging out as a group, Tony. It could be fun.” He paused, biting his lip. “And, uh, maybe you could use it to tell the others about Bruce.” Bruce stiffened, clearly uncomfortable, and Steve rested a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. “They deserve to know, and I can’t see any of them taking it badly. They’re hardly prejudiced people.”

“Steve’s got a point, sugarplum,”Tony pointed out softly. “They’ll end up figuring it out on their own anyway sooner or later. The moons are getting harder on you, don’t pretend they’re not.” Every month Bruce was coming back with more and more cuts and bruises, and it was killing Tony to see his friend in so much pain. According to Healer McCoy, it was perfectly normal for a werewolf in the height of puberty; the wolf was growing, and as such would be in pain each time it shifted. The wolf’s natural response was, of course, to scratch and bite at the pain in an effort to make it stop. 

“What if they don’t take it well, though? I mean, Steve, you’re… Steve. You couldn’t condemn anyone unless they murdered your entire family,” Bruce remarked, making the Gryffindor flush. “But some of the others, especially the purebloods, there’s no telling how they’d react. I don’t want to cause any trouble.” Tony pressed a kiss to Bruce’s cheek, tapping him scoldingly on the nose.

“You’re family and they love you, Bruce. They’d never condemn you, you won’t cause any trouble. Just… think about it, hmm?” Bruce sighed, nodding reluctantly, and Steve shared a smile with Tony. Bruce would probably relax so much more once his secret was out amongst their friends. He was always tiptoeing when they were together, only speaking when spoken to and not making any waves. Tony had been telling him for years he needed to strut, and maybe he’d be able to once he was more comfortable, once they knew. Steve had been incredibly surprised at seeing the difference between Bruce with the others and Bruce with just him and Tony, and wished the others could see him being himself; he knew they’d love him even more for it.

“I should get going, it’s almost curfew,” Steve declared, looking at his watch. Tony whined, hugging his boyfriend tightly, and Bruce laughed when Steve swung his legs over the edge of the bed, standing up with Tony still clinging to his chest. “C’mon, Tony, I have quidditch tomorrow morning, I need my sleep.” Tony sighed, letting his feet touch the floor, and leaned up to press his lips to Steve’s.

“Fine, fine. Want me to walk you back to Gryffindor?” Steve shook his head, digging his jumper out from underneath Bruce’s back. 

“Nah, I’m good, thanks. G’night, Bruce.” Bruce smiled, giving him a wave.

“Night, Steve. See you tomorrow.” Tony nudged the door open, leading Steve down the stairs to the Ravenclaw common room. They only got a few smirks from people in there, and Steve blushed when Jane wolf-whistled playfully from her place curled up by the fire. It was only fair, he supposed, after the treatment she got whenever she stayed late with Thor, though she too had yet to stay the night with her boyfriend. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow, gorgeous,” Tony murmured, leaning in the doorway once Steve had stepped into the corridor outside. The younger boy offered a smile, giving Tony one more shy kiss.

“See you tomorrow. Sleep well.” Tony winked, grinning.

“With you in my dreams, I always do,” he replied, just to make Steve blush. It worked.

.-.-.

With plenty of prodding from Tony, Bruce eventually agreed to the movie night idea, with the intention of coming clean to his friends. They picked a weekend when they knew everyone would be free, and brought pyjamas and a change of clothes so there would be no sneaking back to common rooms at three in the morning. Tony, Bruce and Steve got to the Room first to start setting up, arms full of popcorn and drinks and other snacks, and with a brief thought there was a large cinema screen covering one wall, and several beanbags and sofas scattered around so everyone could have a seat. The Hufflepuffs and Natasha turned up first, also bearing food, and the Gryffindor group with Jane arrived shortly after. “What are we watching?” Rhodey asked, raising his eyebrows at his long-time friend. “Because if you’re the one picking movies, I’m going back to my dorm.” Tony gave the boy an offended look, punching his shoulder.

“You wound me, honeybear. My taste in movies is fantastically awesome,” he insisted, and several people in the room snorted skeptically.

“I picked the movies,” Steve volunteered with a smile. “But if there’s something else you’d prefer to watch, I’m sure we can get it in here.” Rhodey shrugged, shaking his head.

“Nah, man, whatever’s cool.” As everyone started calling dibs on seating and food, Tony walked over to Bruce, who was almost visibly shaking.

“You can do this, Bruce. Remember; strut. Everyone in this room loves you.” Bruce nodded determinedly, taking a deep breath and clearing his throat once everyone had settled down.

“We, uh, kinda had ulterior motives in getting everyone together today,” he announced, wincing when his voice wavered. “I have something I need to tell you all, and well… I’m not sure how you’ll take it.”

“Whatever it is, Bruce, I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Pepper insisted, frowning in concern. Both Steve and Tony placed hands on Bruce’s back in silent support, and he focused on the touch as he gathered his courage.

“I’m a werewolf,” he blurted. “I have been since I was seven. Up until a couple of weeks ago, Tony was the only other person who knew, but we told Steve, and, well… I figured it was time you guys knew as well. I understand if you, uh, don’t want to be friends with me anymore. I won’t hold it against you.” He resisted the urge to squeeze his eyes shut, waiting for any sort of reaction.

“Oh, Bruce, that’s awful!” Jane breathed, a horrified look on her face. “Oh, that must be so terrible for you.”

“You were bitten when you were seven?” Phil asked, as pale as chalk. “How did you even survive?” Bruce wasn’t surprised; if anyone knew the statistics, it was Phil.

“I don’t really know,” he replied honestly. “My mom bought a silver-lined cage to keep me contained, and… there’s a place I go, when I’m here, to keep everyone safe. Fury set it up for me. But I’m getting older, and bigger, and… it’s getting really, really hard to keep control now. Tony thought if I had more people in the know I might find it easier.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Peggy asked, surprising him. He was still in shock that no one had tried to hex him yet.

“What? Uh, not really, I mean—“

“Bruce needs hugs,” Tony cut in. “Like, lots of them. The wolf calms down when it can scent pack, so cuddling is all good. There’s not really much we can do for him during the transformation, though. I’m working on a cure, but… it’s hard going.”

“We can do hugs,” Pepper assured, smiling. Bruce gave her a grateful look, feeling the panic start to abate.

“See, the thing is, the wolf goes through puberty too,” he explained. “And… it kinda sucks. So I apologise now if I lose my temper with any of you, I really don’t mean it, and I don’t want to upset anyone. But sometimes it just all gets too much; my senses are enhanced, and it’s even worse at the moment. Sounds can be too loud, colours too bright, and Merlin, the smells around here. Hormones suck when they’re your own, let alone everyone else’s.” That gained a few snickers, and Tony squeezed Bruce’s shoulder.

“We were having sex, before,” the billionaire said shamelessly. “To help Bruce deal with all the arousal he gets from being in a castle full of teenagers, and to help him relax. But obviously, now I’m with Steve, that’s not happening, so he’s getting kinda cranky again.” Several people blushed, but most nodded in understanding, having been friends for too long to be stunned by anything sexual Tony could possibly say. 

“If, you, uh, need the release,” Fandral piped up tentatively. “I would not object to having relations with you when it all becomes too much. I have been assured I’m quite the skilled lover.” Darcy giggled, and Bruce flushed red. 

“Thanks, Fandral. I’ll, um, keep that in mind.” He doubted he would take the blonde up on it, but… the option was there. 

“Anything else we need to know, or can we start the movie? Because I’ll be honest with you, guys, I’m running out of popcorn already,” Clint announced, making Phil roll his eyes as the others laughed. 

“Sure, I’ll get the lights.” With a muttered spell by Tony, the lights went out and the screen lit up, playing the opening credits. “Told you they’d be okay with it,” he added under his breath, pecking Bruce on the cheek. 

“I believe someone mentioned cuddling,” Darcy declared, grabbing Bruce by the hand and dragging him into the middle of the beanbag pile. “So get to it.” She shut her eyes briefly, and there were several yelps as the beanbags and sofas were replaced with a large bed scattered with pillows and blankets. “I call dibs on Thor!”

“Uh, girlfriend privilege!” Jane protested, shifting to rest her head on Thor’s stomach before Darcy could claim it. 

“Fine, Steve then.” Tony shook his head, pulling Steve close and wrapping around him like an octopus. “Ugh, you suck, Stark. Bruce, honey, come here.” Not waiting for affirmation, Darcy tucked herself into Bruce’s side, bringing his arm over her shoulders. Bruce smiled, touched when he realised he was the centre of the puppy pile, his wolf practically purring in the back of his mind at having all his pack together and happy. _Pack_. Bruce didn’t know when that term had extended to include people other than Tony, but he liked it. 

“Stop thinking so hard, sugarplum,” Tony scolded softly as the movie began, one of his legs thrown over Bruce’s even as he cuddled up to Steve. Bruce could feel several people pressing up against him, or limbs stretched over towards him, and his grin widened when a small, perfectly manicured hand slipped into his own. Craning his neck, he saw Pepper with her head on Tasha’s hip, the Slytherin’s fingers playing with her hair. Clint and Phil were beside Natasha, as her head was on Phil’s thigh. Pepper brought his hand to her lips, kissing it gently, and he could see her mouthing ‘love you’ at him in the darkness. He beamed, mouthing the words back at her. He really was the luckiest guy in the world, to have friends like them.


	9. Mistletoe and Wine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Yule Ball finally arrives, and the firewhiskey in Clint Barton’s flask will make sure that it’s the best party ever.

November arrived surprisingly quickly, and suddenly the only thing anyone could talk about was the Yule Ball. Even the first and second years, though for them it was complaining and jealousy directed at those few lucky second years who had scored an invite from someone in the year above. Hogsmeade’s two clothes shops had all but sold out of dress robes, and large packages had been arriving from home every mealtime for the past few weeks. There wasn’t a single person above third year who wasn’t going to the ball; even Loki was going, at Darcy’s prodding. He just hoped Thor didn’t attempt to coerce him into a dance, he didn’t think he could control his tongue if he did.

Mid-November, with the ball a month away, and Tony Stark was waiting in the stands of the quidditch pitch, watching the Gryffindor team wind down their practice. Steve’s blonde hair was darkened with sweat, and his cheeks were pink from the cold, but he was grinning. Tony had to squish down the sappy thought that he’d never looked more gorgeous. “Spying, Stark?” Peggy called, looking amused as she let her hair fall from its band, draping in wind-mussed curls over her shoulders. He stepped out towards the pitch, offering a grin.

“Waiting for you to finish,” he corrected. “And wondering if your keeper might give me a few moments of his time.” Steve’s grin widened, and he passed off his broom to Bucky.

“I think I can pencil you in,” he replied lightly, breaking away from his team to meet Tony, leaning down for a shy kiss that neither would admit to getting flutters from. Steve still seemed a little awkward about PDA, like he was expecting Tony to push him away, but he was getting better. Tony was trying to restrain himself from lounging all over his boyfriend like he had with Bruce, knowing a lot of people didn’t appreciate that.

“Walk with me?” the Ravenclaw asked, smiling when Steve’s arm slipped around him. They left the pitch, heading towards the castle at a slow pace.

“What brings you down this early in the morning? Did you get enough sleep?” Steve fretted, eyeing the ever-present dark circles under Tony’s eyes. Tony stifled a smile, nodding.

“Yes, _Mom_ ,” he retorted playfully. “Pepper dragged me out of the lab at like, ten last night, I’m fine.” The redhead had, of course, known of his plans, and hadn’t wanted him to oversleep. “See, I don’t know if you’ve heard,” he began, more nervous than he’d necessarily like. “But there’s kind-of this ball thing going on in a few weeks. Celebrating Christmas and all that.” His voice was falsely casual, and he tried not to look at how Steve’s grin grew wider in anticipation. “You know I have a reputation to think about,” Tony continued. “It won’t do me any favours if I don’t turn up with someone gorgeous on my arm. And I can’t think of anyone in this castle more gorgeous than you.” He smiled at Steve’s predictable blush, and the blonde gave him a look.

“Are you asking me to the Yule Ball, Tony?” he asked, voice slightly teasing, and Tony felt himself flush.

“Pretty much, yeah,” he agreed. Steve leaned in, pressing his lips briefly to Tony’s.

“I’d love to go with you,” he replied, and Tony let out a silent sigh of relief. “But, uh, I don’t know how to dance.” Tony blinked, perplexed.

“What? Oh, not a problem. I’m not so much a fan of the formal dances, but one of the girls will probably kidnap me for them. I won’t put you through that torture,” he assured, waving a hand dismissively. Steve nodded, and they went back inside the castle, immediately appreciating the warmth.

“So I guess I’ll have to tell Bucky he’s gonna have to find someone else to go as friends with, huh?” Steve mused, and Tony raised an eyebrow.

“What, that was your plan? Oh, honeybear, I’m so glad I asked you. Going as friends with Bucky would’ve been _tragic_. Can’t he ask Peggy?” Steve snorted, giving his boyfriend a look.

“You really think she’d put up with him?” he pointed out. Tony grinned wryly, conceding the point. “He’ll go on his own, it’ll be fine. He won’t be the only one.” The only ones of their group who actually had dates were those who were already dating. Clint and Phil had been planning to go together since it had been announced, Thor had asked Jane loudly and with roses three weeks ago during dinner, and Pepper and Tasha had been turning down guys left right and centre, so it was assumed they’d be going together. “I should head back up to Gryffindor,” Steve said belatedly, looking down at his mud-stained quidditch robes. “I need to shower and change before breakfast.” Tony pouted, letting out a quiet whine of protest.

“But I like you all sweaty,” he argued playfully, giving the blonde a leering look and watching his face go red. Tony laughed, lightly pushing Steve’s chest. “Go on, hot stuff, go make yourself presentable. I’ll see you at breakfast.” Gripping the front of Steve’s robe, he pulled him close and planted a long, languid kiss on his lips. Only then did he release him, offering a wink before turning away towards the Great Hall.

.-.-.

The day of the Yule Ball, the castle was abuzz with activity. They’d all been thrown out of the Great Hall after an early lunch in order for the prefects and teachers to decorate the hall. By five, the prefects were also ejected, leaving the teachers to finish things off before the ball began. The castle corridors were empty as the prefects made their way back to their houses, and Peggy and Fandral’s eyebrows shot up when they slipped through the Gryffindor portrait hole. The common room was near-empty, but the noise trailing down the dormitory stairs betrayed where the entire house were. “This is where we part, then,” Fandral remarked wryly, offering Peggy a short bow before stepping towards the boys’ staircase. “And I wish you the best of luck entering the battleground that will be your dormitory. From what I heard from Sif, the rest of the girls are joining you.”

“Oh, Merlin,” Peggy muttered, making the blonde laugh. “I’ll see you in a few hours.” Hurrying up the stairs to her own dorm, Peggy tentatively knocked on the door before opening it, staring in shock at the scene that greeted her.

“Hey, you’re here! It’s about time!” Darcy called, grinning. “Get your butt in the shower, missy.” The only Gryffindor in the dorm was Sif, and Peggy was unsurprised that her roommates had taken refuge elsewhere. Probably in Sif’s dorm, with the two girls in there. Darcy, Jane, Sif, Pepper and Natasha were all wearing dressing gowns, freshly showered and smiling. Darcy had pinned her hair up in rollers, and was happily painting her toenails green. Natasha was sat in front of the mirror doing her make-up, Pepper and Sif were drying their hair, and Jane was hunting through a jewellery box — probably for the earrings she’d been determined to wear, and had therefore lost. Peggy merely shook her head in dismay, grabbing her washbag, dressing gown and towel and disappearing into the bathroom.

When she returned to the common room, Tasha had finished her own make-up and was doing Jane’s, under Darcy’s watchful eye as the youngest girl did her own. Pepper was straightening her hair, Sif’s hair was dry and tied back in a high ponytail, and someone had unearthed their StarkPlayer for a little background music. Peggy suspected Darcy; it was mostly muggle pop music. “Rollers are over there,” the Hufflepuff told her, gesturing to Peggy’s bed. “I borrowed a couple of yours, sorry.” Peggy smiled, shaking her head and going over to get her rollers and the hairdryer. Their dresses were hanging in garment protectors from the top of the wardrobe, and Peggy couldn’t stop glancing over at hers and smiling.

“Should you two be getting ready together?” she asked Pepper and Natasha teasingly, and both redheads rolled their eyes in near-unison.

“It’s a ball, not a wedding,” Natasha retorted, carefully applying Jane’s lipstick. “It’s not like we’re not allowed to see each other.”

“Besides, my roommates kicked me out for their own thing,” Pepper added, finishing her hair and reaching for her make-up bag. “It was this or get ready with Clint and Rhodey, and there are some things I just don’t need to see in life.”

“I would not object to seeing that,” Darcy piped up, making Pepper snort.

“Of course you wouldn’t,” she replied dryly, shaking her head. “I’m surprised you haven’t snagged one of the boys to be your hot date for the night.”

“Why would I grab one of them when I can arrive single and dance with all of them?” Darcy retorted smugly. “All the man-candy for me. Except Steve, Tony probably won’t let anyone touch him. Damn shame.”

“I dunno, if you ask nicely enough he won’t be able to say no,” Jane told her. “Tony appreciates your evil mastermind potential. He’s more likely to grant you favours.”

“Sweet!” Darcy crowed, fist-pumping. With a quick flourish, she finished her mascara, checking her face in the mirror. Both she and Peggy were going for a 40s-style look, with bright red lipstick and dark mascara. Jane’s make-up was very natural, Pepper barely had any on at all, and Sif’s made her cheekbones look even more defined, but was otherwise quite minimal.

When their make-up was done, and Darcy and Peggy had both unpinned their rollers to let their hair loose — Peggy’s in sleek victory rolls, and Darcy’s in elaborate curls that seemed to be held together only with magic and a can of hairspray — the dresses were finally removed from their garment bags. The rest of it all went in quite a blur, shoes and jewellery being found and put on, last minute touches to hair and dresses being done, and the occasional kiss between Pepper and Natasha when the other girls were too preoccupied to tease them for it, and then they were finally ready.

“We look hot,” Darcy declared, staring at them all in the mirror.

“I have to agree with you there,” Pepper replied, smirking with her arm around Tasha’s waist. The Slytherin looked deadly in a sleek black dress, her red hair in free curls framing her face and a simple silver necklace to match her earrings. Pepper was equally stunning in a blue dress with a low back that clung to her curves, her heels impossibly high. Jane’s dress was a paler blue with a puffy skirt, her hair in a half ponytail. Sif seemed far older than her fourteen years in a dark grey and burgundy shimmery dress with elaborate beading that matched the metal clasp holding her ponytail back. Darcy’s dress was a bright green vintage number, matching her green peep-toe heels and making her eyes seem even brighter. Peggy, on the other hand, had a red dress with ruffles around the bust, the same colour as her lipstick.

“I suppose we’d best go see how the boys clean up, hmm? It’s almost time.” It was ten to seven, and as dinner began promptly at seven-fifteen, there was no being ‘fashionably late’. They weren’t the only girls descending the staircase to meet the boys, but it was easy to see their group when they got to the common room; Steve and Thor towered over all others. Jane giggled when Thor’s jaw dropped visibly, and the blonde bowed low over her hand when she offered it, kissing it tenderly.

“Lady Jane, you are the most radiant vision I have ever been blessed with seeing,” he declared firmly, his eyes fixed on her as she blushed.

“And you should definitely wear dress robes more often,” she replied. “They suit you.” His robes were black and grey with deep red accents, and made him look every bit the young pureblood lord he was. All the boys looked very dapper; Steve blushed when Peggy leaned up to peck his cheek.

“Tony won’t be able to keep his eyes off you,” she declared with a grin, making him blush. Volstagg grinned at Sif, tugging her ponytail gently.

“Look who’s grown into a proper young woman, then?” he teased. “You look very beautiful, my lady. You all do.”

“We will most definitely be entering with the loveliest ladies at the ball,” Fandral agreed, smiling widely. “Shall we head down? Friend Steve is most anxious to see his beau.” Steve blushed even darker, but allowed Peggy to slip an arm through his. Sif allowed Volstagg to accompany her, Thor wound Jane’s arm through his own, and Darcy eyed up the three remaining boys contemplatively.

“You’re with me,” she said to Fandral, taking his arm, and he grinned at her, bringing her hand to his lips.

“My lady,” Hogun offered to Pepper, who broke away from Natasha with a smile. Bucky looked at Tasha, smirking.

“Guess you’re with me then, Red.” She rolled her eyes, allowing him to take her arm.

“Fantastic,” she deadpanned.

.-.-.

Tony fiddled anxiously with his bowtie, yelping when Bruce slapped his hand away. “Stop messing with it, it looks fine,” the werewolf insisted.

“Fine isn’t good enough, Bruce!” Rhodey snorted at his friend’s words, punching him lightly on the shoulder.

“Stop fussing, loverboy. You’re making it worse,” he informed the genius, who looked aghast, immediately dropping his hands from his bowtie. It was a muted gold, matching the trim on his dress robes. They were a dark wine red, and his shirt was a brighter, Gryffindor red. He insisted he’d picked out the colours before he’d asked Steve out, but Bruce thought he was lying.

The Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff boys contingent of their group was waiting in the Entrance Hall for the group from Gryffindor Tower to arrive before going in and grabbing a table. Clint and Phil were quite happily making puppy eyes at each other, as they had been since they’d seen each other in the corridor outside their dormitories. Phil’s robes were a classic black, while Clint’s were a dark purple that suited him surprisingly well. Tony had to admit they made a pretty hot couple. Rhodey’s dress robes were olive green and pressed to the point of perfection, while Bruce had gone for a more emerald green, the dark purple bowtie Tony’s influence.

“They should be here soon,” Tony muttered, glancing at his watch.

“Is patience not in your dictionary?” Phil asked wryly, arm firmly around Clint’s waist. Tony opened his mouth to retort, but his jaw slackened as he looked at the stairs.

“Oh… sweet… Merlin,” he breathed, stunned. That drew the attention of the others, and Clint let out a low whistle when he saw the remainder of their group descending the stairs.

“Wow,” Bruce murmured, sounding somewhat dry-mouthed. Tony spared a brief glance for the ridiculous attractiveness of his entire friend group, before his eyes were drawn back to Steve once more. His dress robes were a deep sapphire blue, his bowtie a similar dark red to Tony’s robes, and his blonde hair was combed neatly to the side. Tony definitely needed to commend the tailor down in Hogsmeade; those robes fit _perfectly_. The blonde’s face lit up when he saw Tony, and Clint sniggered when Steve missed a step, almost falling down the stairs if not for Peggy keeping him upright. The Gryffindor prefect smiled knowingly when she saw Tony, releasing Steve’s arm when they got to the bottom of the stairs. Tony strode across the hall, stopping a few feet in front of Steve.

“Hey,” he greeted, glad when he sounded suave instead of stupid. “Have I mentioned that you are really, really attractive in dress robes? I mean, wow. Just… wow.” Steve turned almost as red as his bowtie, but he smiled the soft, fond smile that was reserved for Tony.

“You look amazing,” he murmured, resting a hand on Tony’s hip. “I love the colours.”

“I’m all about the red and gold,” Tony replied with a wink. “Though I don’t know if I should be jealous; you arriving with a beautiful woman on your arm. Showing me up,” he mock-complained, pressing a kiss to Peggy’s cheek.

“Well he’s all yours now, Stark. Look after him,” she replied, patting his cheek, a serious expression on her face despite her smile. Tony nodded earnestly.

“I’ll treat him like a prince,” he promised, placing his hand over Steve’s and squeezing briefly.

The two groups converged, compliments flying back and forth — once Clint and Rhodey picked their jaws off the floor in the face of the girls — and when the Great Hall doors opened, Tony offered a hand to Steve. “Shall we?” he drawled, grinning. Steve accepted the hand, and they walked in with Clint and Phil arm in arm on Steve’s left, and Pepper and Tasha on Tony’s right. Behind them Jane and Thor walked beside Volstagg, Sif and Hogun. Fandral moved to release Darcy’s arm, but she gripped it tight, offering him a smirk.

“You’re staying with me, hot stuff, and we are making an entrance,” she declared. He laughed, nodding, and walked at her side.

“As m’lady wishes,” he agreed. Peggy reluctantly allowed Bucky to escort her in, once he pointed out that a woman as beautiful as her shouldn’t enter unescorted. Rhodey mock-gagged behind her back, earning a dark look from the Gryffindor boy.

They found a table big enough to accommodate them all, and while conversation started Tony was too busy staring at Steve to really take part. “The prefects really outdid themselves decorating, huh?” Steve murmured, leaning in so Tony could hear him. Tony glanced around; the hall was a veritable winter wonderland, with ice sculptures on every table and snow-covered Christmas trees with live fairies dancing from branch to branch.

“Yeah, it looks great,” he agreed, reaching over to twine his fingers with Steve’s, playing with the boy’s larger hand. “I apologise now for the creepy amount of staring at you I’m likely to do tonight, but I can’t help myself” he added frankly, making Steve duck his head, flushing.

“I don’t mind,” he mumbled shyly. “I’m glad you like it.” Tony smirked, letting his eyes trail slowly up Steve’s form.

“I like,” he assured, a slow grin tugging at his face. “I like a _lot_.” Steve was saved having to reply when the tables covered with food, plates appearing in front of each of them. Quiet music started up in the background, the string quartet on the stage playing themselves. Tony glanced at Clint across the table, who had a definite flask-shaped bulge in the breast of his robe. After dinner, the party would really start.

.-.-.

Darcy gave her fellow Hufflepuff a discreet high-five when he snuck off to go spike the punch bowl when the dancing started up, offering Fandral a smirk. “I’m going to go find Loki. You coming?” she asked, knowing Loki did actually sort-of like Fandral.

“If he would have me, of course,” the blonde agreed, standing so Darcy could take his arm, both of them wandering through the crowds until they spotted the shy Slytherin, looking incredibly regal in his black and green robes.

“Wow, Loki, you clean up nice,” Darcy declared with a teasing grin, bussing a kiss against his cheek. “Fandral came with me because he’s my man-candy until one of us gets bored, okay?”

“Do I have a choice in the matter?” Loki replied wryly, though he offered Fandral a nod and the briefest smile. Fandral beamed back, though knew better than to clap the boy on the shoulder like he wanted to. “You look stunning, Darcy.” Darcy grinned, giving an obliging twirl to make her dress flare out.

“Thanks. You owe me at least one dance tonight, okay mister? I won’t make you come talk to Thor or anything, but you are not allowed to lurk in the corner all night,” she instructed, poking him in the chest.

“I’m sure Lady Sif would also like to dance with you tonight, Loki. You know how she feels about the rest of us,” Fandral added wryly, making Loki actually crack a small grin. Through their childhood, Sif had always been of the firm opinion that Loki was the only competent dancer of the boys, and would always commandeer him when they had to dance at their parents’ formal parties. Fandral was an acceptable substitute, and Hogun’s dancing was passable, but Sif never danced with Thor or Volstagg more than once in a night, for fear of her toes.

“I believe I could oblige her. I have missed dancing with her,” Loki admitted. Fandral braved reaching out to squeeze the younger boy’s shoulder.

“She has missed dancing with you, too. And if you would permit me, I would also like a dance with you later on. It has been quite some time since the two of us took to the floor,” he said with a grin.

“If you can pry yourself away from your fangirls long enough to spare a dance for me, I will allow it,” Loki agreed, smirking.

“Oh, that I can’t wait to see,” Darcy remarked excitedly, rubbing her hands together. “And hey, you’re welcome over at our table anytime, alright? I know you probably won’t because, well, Thor, but… the offer’s open.” She took Loki’s hand in hers for the briefest moment, seeing his eyes flicking to Thor sat with Jane on his knee, talking jovially with Volstagg and Rhodey. She knew it wasn’t Thor’s fault, and he had no idea, but she still wished he wouldn’t be so… loved-up when Loki could see him. It was hurting her friend, and it sucked.

“I can’t make any promises,” he said eventually, giving her an imploring look. She smiled, nodding, and released his hand.

“Well, hopefully you’ll come over and see us. Even if it’s only for that dance,” Fandral replied. They were interrupted when the music changed, growing louder as the dance floor cleared of tables, making it very clear that the dinner part of the ball was over. “Darcy, I believe I promised you the first dance,” the blonde boy declared, offering a hand to the Hufflepuff. She grinned, taking it.

“Catch you later, Loki. Try and loosen up a little!” she urged, laughing as Fandral dragged her out onto the floor, starting up a lively waltz.

“You’re good for him, you know,” Fandral told her, a smile on his face. He spun her out, then pulled her back close, surprised at how good a dancer she was. “He’s always needed a friend like you.”

“He’s good for me, too. And he underestimates himself; he’s a lot more fun to hang out with than he thinks he is,” she replied, giggling when he dipped her. “You’re good at this.”

“So are you,” he complimented, stepping into something a little more difficult.

“I’ve been taking dance classes since I was like, five,” Darcy explained. “Ballet, tap, modern, but I mostly do swing now. If they play something a little more jazzy later on, I’ll show you. I know Tony can dance swing.” He was Howard Stark’s son, he’d been in dance classes since he could walk.

“I look forward to seeing it,” Fandral replied, coming to a neat halt when the music stopped and bowing to her. She curtseyed, allowing him to escort her off the dance floor back to their table, and surveyed the crowd. She had to pick her next partner.

.-.-.

The ball was well and truly underway, and it was a definite hit with the students. Fury seemed to have given up trying to keep his eye on them, sitting at the head table with a despairing look on his face, and it was now becoming quite clear that the punch wasn’t exactly non-alcoholic. Only one bowl had been spiked, Clint wanting to leave the option open for those who didn’t want to get drunk, but someone was pedalling Firewhiskey, they could tell.

Pepper smirked to herself as she and Natasha danced together, gaining more than a few looks from the male population of the school. The formal music was over, a selection of wizarding and muggle pop and rock music having taken over the room, and the dancing was starting to get a little indecent. Tony was lucky that Steve knew he and Bruce weren’t romantically inclined, because the way they were dancing definitely looked like they were. Darcy was dancing close by with Thor, Jane, Sif and the boys, though it was clear that Volstagg and Thor weren’t the best dancers in the world. “I don’t know whether half these guys here are jealous of you or me,” Natasha said loudly enough to be heard over the music, smirking.

“Definitely jealous of me,” Pepper insisted with a laugh. “But I think more of them just want to be in the middle of us.” Natasha’s smirk widened, and she looked over at their group of friends, laughing at Tony trying to teach Steve how to grind on Bruce.

“Hey, Hawkeye!” she called, watching the archer’s head snap up. His hands were on Phil’s ass as they danced, and they were almost as close as she and Pepper were. She jerked her head at him, beckoning him, and he pecked Phil briefly on the lips before coming to join them. Phil didn’t seem to mind, allowing Peggy to drag him into a dance.

“What’s up, ladies?” he asked, offering them a grin as he sidled between them, an arm around each of their waists.

“Wanna make some guys jealous by dancing with us? I’ve barely seen you all night, loser,” Tasha told him, looping her arms around his neck to dance close by him.

“Is that even a question?” he retorted, easily moving to the beat with Tasha at his front and Pepper at his back. “You girls are lucky Phil’s not the jealous type,” he teased, and Pepper snickered.

“Oh, please. Like you’d know what to do with a woman,” she replied playfully, patting his cheek. “Nice eyeliner, by the way. Not a lot of guys can pull that off, but… yeah. Hot.” He flashed her a grin and a wink, grinding up against her.

“Thank you, beautiful. And just because I don’t like lady parts doesn’t mean my boyfriend shouldn’t be jealous of this,” he joked.

“Is this a private party, or can anyone join in?” Tony cut in, playfully smacking Clint’s ass as he moved in to kiss Pepper’s cheek. “Honeybunch, if you dance like that much longer, some of the boys are gonna have some very embarrassing stains on their trousers.” She laughed, sliding an arm across his shoulders.

“Would that be such a bad thing?” she asked innocently, making him smirk.

“And this is why you’re my favourite. Don’t tell Steve.”

“I already know she’s your favourite,” Steve assured his boyfriend, making him jump as he realised the blonde was behind him. Steve placed his hands on Tony’s waist, leaning down to speak in his ear. “I’m gonna go get a drink, maybe sit down for a while. This whole dancing thing really isn’t my style.”

“Want me to come with?” the Ravenclaw asked, but Steve shook his head, smiling.

“Nah, you’re having fun, it’s fine. I’ll catch you later. Pepper, Tasha, it’s not nice to tease the poor boys by dancing that lewdly,” he added, eyeing the two girls in light reprimand.

“If they weren’t such perverts to be staring in the first place, we wouldn’t be,” Tasha retorted, reminding him of how many boys had been staring when the two girls had slow-danced together.

“Fair enough. Make sure, this one keeps his hands to himself, would you?” he teased, and Tony let out an offended noise, twisting his head and reaching up to pull Steve into a kiss.

“You’re the only one I’m putting my hands on, gorgeous,” he promised. “But our friends don’t count. They all have such nice butts, it’s really hard to not touch!” His voice came out as a whine, and Steve laughed, knowing Tony had had more than a few glasses of spiked punch.

“Okay, our friends don’t count,” he agreed with an eye-roll. “See you later.” With that he slipped off into the crowd, and Pepper laughed when Tony watched him go, eyes on the blonde’s backside.

“Come on, Stark; you owe me a few more dances before the night is through.”

.-.-.

The evening was beginning to wind down, and the music was the type to slow-dance to, though it was still pop music. Most of the third years had gone to bed, as well as a lot of the fourth and fifth years, but their group were still making the most of it. Tony could see Darcy dancing with Fandral once more, and wondered if there was something more going on there — only time would tell, he supposed. Close to them, Sif danced with Loki; they’d danced a rather impressive foxtrot together early in the evening, and Tony was sure he’d seen the Gryffindor girl dragging Loki out during some of the more muggle music. Maybe Sif would persuade Loki to hang out with them, or at least Thor, a little more often.

Eyes landing on the person he’d been looking for, Tony let the soft smile cross his lips, wandering over to where Steve was sat at this table. “Hey, handsome,” he greeted, startling the blonde, though Steve immediately smiled at him. “Wanna dance?” He hadn’t actually danced with Steve all night, not properly. Dancing together as a group didn’t really count.

“Oh, uh, I dunno, I,” Steve stuttered, looking nervous. Tony tried not to frown.

“Come on, it’s really easy. Just put your arm around me and shuffle on the spot,” he encouraged. Steve bit his lip, shrugging.

“Maybe the next song,” he said reluctantly. Tony’s frown deepened, and he pulled up a chair opposite Steve, leaning in close.

“Any reason you don’t wanna dance with me? I won’t take ‘I can’t dance’ as an excuse.” Steve sighed, leaning his head on his hand.

“When my Dad was alive, there used to be music playing in the apartment all the time,” he began, and Tony listened intently. “My Mom loved it, and when he was home he’d always dance with her. In the kitchen, the living room, wherever; if there was music on, Dad would just grab her by the hand and dance with her. I remember when I asked him about it, he said… he said that he loved to dance with her because it gave him an excuse to hold her close and never let go, and that’s what people did when they were in love. After he died… well, I haven’t seen her dance since.” Tony let out a small hum of understanding, squeezing Steve’s knee.

“I’m sorry,” he started, but Steve shook his head.

“I’ve never danced with anyone like that,” he continued as if Tony hadn’t spoken. “Bucky took dance classes when we were younger, but I refused. We had school dances and stuff when we were little kids, but I never slow-danced with anyone, or danced with just one person. I guess… I’ve always been waiting for the right partner. I don’t know.” He shrugged, biting his lip. “I just… it’s hard to explain.”

“You don’t have to explain yourself, I get it,” Tony replied, offering a smile. They’d barely been together a couple of months, he wasn’t surprised Steve didn’t feel comfortable enough to dance with him yet if that was how he felt about dancing. It did surprise him, however, that despite knowing how Steve felt about dancing, Tony still _really_ wanted to dance with him. To show him how he felt, that way.

“I’m sorry,” Steve said apologetically, but Tony cut him off with a kiss.

“Don’t be,” he urged, pushing a few stray strands of blonde hair back from Steve’s forehead. “You don’t wanna dance, you don’t have to. Not when it means so much to you. You deserve to have the right partner.” They sat close together, not speaking, until the song ended and there was a pause in which Professor Pym announced that the next song would be the last one before bed. Suddenly, Steve stood, startling Tony.

“May I have this dance?” he blurted, shocking the Ravenclaw boy.

“What? But, Steve, what about…?” Steve shrugged, offering him a shy smile.

“I’ve been waiting all these years for the right partner. I think I’ve found him,” he replied, sounding completely sure of himself. Tony blinked, then dazedly slipped his hand into Steve’s, allowing the blonde boy to lead him onto the dance floor. Seeing Steve wasn’t really sure what to do, Tony helped position him, then rested his head against Steve’s shoulder. It was times like this he appreciated the height difference between them.

They were silent for most of the dance, Tony letting his eyes fall shut as he basked in Steve’s presence, loving the long arm wrapped securely around him, the large hand in his own against Steve’s chest. “Dancing all you thought it would be, blondie?” he asked quietly, lips brushing Steve’s neck. Steve looked down at him with a smile that took Tony’s breath away.

“And more,” he replied honestly, voice husky. Tony grinned, then caught a glance of green and white out of the corner of his eye. Looking up, he snorted, making Steve frown. “What?”

“Look behind you.” Steve twisted, letting out a laugh at the sprig of mistletoe bobbing above their heads. Looking around the room, he saw Rhodey sat at their table with his wand out, a smirk on his face.

“Guess we’d better follow the rules,” Steve murmured softly, lifting one hand to gently cup Tony’s jaw. Tony’s smile widened, and he leaned up on his toes for a kiss, hand slipping from Steve’s shoulder to grasp the back of his neck, fingers threading through the short blonde hair. Merlin, he was _so_ screwed.

.-.-.

The ball was technically over, and with no music in the Great Hall most people were retreating back to their common rooms, bowties undone and high heels in hand, several going back with people they’d arrived with, and even more with people they hadn’t. Phil wondered how many new couples had been created by the ball, and how long they would actually last.

It didn’t surprise him to find his boyfriend sat high in a Christmas tree in the courtyard, tossing baubles at couples making out in the bushes. “Really, Clint?” he called, amused. Clint grinned when he spotted his boyfriend, neatly jumping from the tree and landing with only a slight stumble, offering Phil a jaunty salute.

“Heyyyy, hot stuff,” he drawled, leering. Phil rolled his eyes, slipping an arm around the blonde’s waist.

“Party’s over, Hawkeye. It’s bed time, everyone else has already gone up,” he informed him, feeling the younger Hufflepuff leaning heavily against him. Phil wondered how much he’d had to drink; he could smell the Firewhiskey on him.

“Oooh, taking me to bed, are you?” Clint asked with a smirk, pressing himself against Phil’s chest, one hand creeping down to cup his ass. “I think I can get down with that.” Sighing, Phil started half-dragging Clint out of the courtyard, glad the Hufflepuff dorms weren’t as far as say, Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. Clint’s lips pressed to his neck, hand working clumsily at the buttons of his shirt.

“Can’t you wait until we’re somewhere private before undressing me?” Phil requested in exasperation. Clint snickered, shaking his head.

“Nope, want you naked now,” he insisted. Phil snorted, pulling him up into a kiss to distract him.

“Aren’t you a charmer,” he muttered dryly. He managed to hold Clint off until they got up to his dorm — Phil wasn’t surprised to see his roommates were absent, probably with their own girlfriends — but then the archer started at Phil’s clothes with renewed determination. “Slow down, Clint.” The blonde shook his head, pushing Phil’s dress robes off his shoulders.

“Merlin, Phil, so sexy,” he breathed, finally getting his shirt undone enough to make it join the robes. “Want you to fuck me.” Phil froze, eyes going wide. It wasn’t like that was something Clint hadn’t voiced before, but it had never been said so _urgently_.

“Clint, you’re drunk,” he said with a shake of his head, pushing him away. Clint pouted.

“No ‘m’not. Just a little tipsy,” he insisted, dropping his own robes and tugging his bowtie off. “Sober enough to know I want you.”

“See, I don’t think you are,” Phil said calmly, trying not to let his eyes linger as Clint stripped off his shirt, quickly reaching for his belt to let his trousers fall to the floor. The tent in his boxers was obvious, and it was affecting Phil more than he wanted it to. “Come on, Clint, let’s just go to bed. You want me that bad, sober up, then we’ll talk.” He wanted to have sex with Clint, a lot of the time it was all he ever thought about, but… not like this. He wanted them both to be able to properly enjoy it.

“What’s the problem, baby? Don’t you want me?” Clint whined, undoing Phil’s belt with nimble fingers. Phil sighed, wrapping his arms firmly around Clint, pinning him to his chest.

“You know I want you,” he said, voice coming out as a growl. “I’ve wanted you for so long. But you’re drunk, and I’m not taking advantage of you. I have more respect for you than that.” Clint struggled a little, trying to get a hand inside Phil’s trousers, but eventually relaxed in his arms.

“No sex?” he asked, sounding forlorn. Phil gave him a soft smile, shaking his head.

“No sex,” he confirmed. “Trust me, you’ll thank me in the morning.” Figuring Clint was in no state to brush his teeth or wash the eyeliner off his face, Phil nudged him into bed, slipping off his shoes and trousers and ducking quickly into the bathroom, sliding into bed beside his boyfriend when he was done. Clint didn’t hesitate to cuddle up close in the single bed, head resting in the crook of Phil’s neck.

“M’sorry for gettin’ drunk,” he mumbled, dropping an apologetic kiss on Phil’s collarbone. Phil stroked Clint’s hair, humming softly.

“It’s okay. But maybe you’ll learn your lesson now, huh?” He felt Clint smile, the younger boy hugging him closer.

“Love you, baby.” Phil, for once, didn’t even protest the nickname, letting his eyes fall shut.

“Love you, too. Even if you are kind-of an idiot.” Clint snuffled a laugh, arm tightening around Phil’s chest. Phil was not looking forward to the talk they’d have to have in the morning. Still, it had been a damn good night.

.-.-.

Nick Fury surveyed the disaster zone that was his Great Hall, having finally kicked the last couple out of the courtyard bushes. There were some parts of his students that he really, really didn’t want to see. He let out a sigh, shaking his head and crossing his arms over his chest. “Never again,” he declared vehemently. “I don’t care what the school board say, I am never doing this shit again.”

He turned his back on the hall, letting the house elves take care of it. He needed some peace and quiet, and a stiff drink or two.


	10. Holiday Hangover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint faces the aftermath of the Yule Ball, and as Hogwarts breaks up for Christmas some goodbyes are harder than others.

Clint’s head was pounding when he woke, and he let out a low groan. “Good morning, sleeping beauty,” Phil murmured, sounding amused. Clint groaned again, squeezing his eyes shut against the light and burying his face in Phil’s soft t-shirt.

“God, what did I do last night?” he croaked, feeling Phil’s hand cup the back of his head.

“You really don’t want me to answer that.” There was something odd in the older boy’s tone, and it made Clint uneasy. He desperately cast his mind back to the previous night; he remembered arriving at the ball, Phil looking ridiculously sexy in his dress robes. Dinner, then spiking the punch, then dancing, more dancing, a couple of shots of Firewhiskey… and then it was all a bit of a blur. Shit. 

“Please tell me what I did to piss you off last night,” he requested with a wince, tentatively cracking one eye open. Phil wasn’t smiling, but he didn’t look angry, so Clint supposed it couldn’t have been too bad.

“You got drunk and tried to have sex with me. And considering you don’t remember that, it’s a good thing I turned you down.” Clint felt as if he’d had a bucket of cold water thrown in his face, and the churning of his stomach was completely unrelated to his hangover.

“Oh, fuck,” he muttered, forehead pressing against Phil’s sternum. “Shit. I’m sorry. I’m really, really sorry. Merlin, I’m a shitty boyfriend.” He felt Phil’s lips against his head, and the prefect’s hand stroked his back gently.

“No you’re not. You just think you can handle more than you actually can,” he replied. 

“Yeah but I shouldn’t have put you in that position,” Clint argued. “That was a dick move.”

“It was,” Phil agreed, nodding. “But you were drunk, so I’ll forgive you. And hey, at least you propositioned me and not some random guy who would’ve taken you up on your offer,” he reasoned. Clint felt sick at the thought of someone else touching him when he was too drunk to know it wasn’t Phil. 

“Never drinking again,” he declared fiercely. Phil snorted.

“I’ll believe that when I see it,” he retorted lightly. “Don’t beat yourself up over it. Everyone does stuff they regret when drunk; that’s why they have boyfriends who stay sober to keep them out of trouble,” he added with a faint grin, pulling Clint up into a soft kiss. “Just please, never do that to me again. Having to stop my drunk boyfriend from taking my virginity was not how I wanted to end the night.” Clint winced once more, kissing Phil’s jaw in apology.

“Never again, I promise. Thanks for saying no; I want our first time to be perfect.” Phil smiled at him, shifting to get a little more comfortable. 

“Me too. And I’d like it if at least one of us were overage when it happened,” he added wryly. He’d be turning sixteen in January, and Clint would turn fifteen two weeks after on February 5th. They could wait a little longer, there was no rush. Phil was firmly of the opinion that fourteen was too young for Clint to lose his virginity, and Clint agreed with him — though that didn’t stop him from really, really wanting Phil to fuck him. But he was happy going slow and doing other things. 

“M’sorry,” he said again, hugging Phil close. “Love you.” Phil let out a long breath, nose pressed to Clint’s cheek.

“I know you are, and I forgive you. I love you too, you know I do. It’s why I want to take our time on this,” he reasoned quietly. Clint tilted his head to meet the older Hufflepuff’s eyes, smiling.

“I’m totally okay with waiting. And I know that whenever we do decide to go all the way, it’s going to be amazing,” he murmured confidently. He then smirked, giving Phil a leering look. “Apology blowjob?” Phil snorted, tugging him into a kiss.

“Shower,” he corrected. “Then maybe.” Clint smirked, allowing Phil to drag him out of bed, despite his headache. His eyes fell to the prefect’s ass as they headed for the bathroom, and a smirk tugged his lips. Yeah, he wanted to wait, but he was _really_ looking forward to tapping that.

.-.-.

The Hogwarts Express wasn’t leaving until the day after, so the Sunday after the ball was spent not only nursing hangovers and sleeping in, but frantically packing and saying goodbyes. Darcy had actually been organised for once and packed most of her things the day before the ball, so she only had to throw her essentials in on Monday morning. This left her free to go for a walk on Sunday afternoon, as she desperately needed some time to think. 

She shoved gloved hands in her coat pockets as she walked, snow crunching under her boots. The ball had been… awesome. Everyone seemed to have had a really good time, and no one in her friend group had cried, which was always a plus. She’d seen plenty of girls crying — particularly from the upper years — and what had looked like quite a few break-ups, but those were standard with a school party. She smiled to herself as she remembered the enthusiastic jive she’d gotten Tony to dance with her, the impressed looks on their friends’ faces at their moves. She’d known Stark wouldn’t let her down. 

That wasn’t what was on her mind, though. All her friends were happy, except for Loki, but there was very little she could do to help him. No, for once her worries were for herself. She’d had a really good time hanging out with Fandral last night, and despite her plan to switch arm-candy several times throughout the night whenever the other guys would let her, she’d always found herself returning to his side after dancing with one of her other friends. He’d looked very handsome in his grey and gold robes, and she’d been the object of jealous looks all night whenever he finished dancing with one of his many fangirls and took Darcy’s arm in his. He’d enjoyed himself too, she thought, but… she didn’t know what it meant now. Had it been a friends thing? She wasn’t really sure, and it was driving her crazy. With a huffed sigh, she started back towards the castle, the cold starting to get to her. 

She froze when she saw a familiar blonde head of hair by the doors, wondering how long Fandral had been sat on the steps watching her. He offered a faint smile when he saw she’d noticed him, getting to his feet. “You looked troubled, so I thought it best not to interrupt you,” he told her by way of greeting, frowning when he saw her shivering. “You must be freezing, here.” He pulled out his wand, casting a warming charm on her, then fell into step beside her. Darcy tried not to blush, their shoulders brushing every other step. 

“You’re up early,” she remarked, making him smile.

“Thor’s snoring woke me up,” he explained. “I swear, he’s ten times worse when he’s been drinking. Good luck to the Lady Jane is all I can say.” Darcy giggled, and he looked at her askance. “And you? It can’t be a regular thing for you to walk in the snow so early on a Sunday. Unless you like that sort of thing.” She shrugged, watching a rabbit bound across the snow towards the Forbidden Forest.

“I like to walk when I need to think. And the snow’s nice,” she added. 

“What thoughts are weighing down that pretty head of yours, Lady Darcy?” he queried, making her flush faintly. 

“Well, I, uh… listen, about last night…” She trailed off, realising how that sounded, but he merely chuckled.

“The same thoughts I’m dealing with, then?” he asked ruefully. “Darcy, forgive me; may I be frank with you?” she nodded, and he took her arm in his, bringing her to a halt. “I had a lot of fun with you last night. You’re a very good dancer, and quite the conversationalist. And… you looked beautiful, in your dress,” he added with the soft, roguish grin that melted the knees of almost every girl in the school. Darcy was no exception. 

“I’m sensing a but here,” she presumed, making his grin falter.

“But I will be sixteen in a week,” he continued. “And while I have no doubt you will be a most formidable woman… the age gap is a tad too large for me, at present.” Darcy was one of the youngest in her year, and wouldn’t be fourteen until late June. “I don’t want this to affect our friendship, however. On the contrary; I hope we can become better friends through this, as I truly do enjoy spending time with you.” She smiled at him, tucking her hair back behind her ear as a breeze sent it flying. 

“I understand, I was kind-of thinking the same thing. And we can definitely be better friends, and then I can make your fan-club jealous by hanging out with you,” she added, smirking when he laughed.

“That sounds like a perfect plan. You’d have thought most of those girls would have given up by now,” he mused. She gave him a pointed look.

“Maybe they would if you didn’t keep occasionally dating them,” she teased in reply. The Gryffindor held a hand to his chest as if shot, laughing.

“You wound me, my dear,” he cried, but she merely rolled her eyes, smiling.

“There is one thing I want to do, though. Before we decide on this whole ‘definitely friends’ thing.” He raised an eyebrow at her words, and she took a deep breath before rising up on her toes, leaning in to press her lips softly to his. It was hesitant — she’d never done this before, and had no idea what she was doing — but luckily he responded, easing her into the closed-mouth kiss. He smiled at her when they parted, one hand cupping her face. 

“You are going to make some handsome young man the luckiest person in the world, I hope you’re aware,” he told her, and she could feel her face heating. “It is a shame that I shall not be that man, but there are others far more deserving of you.”

“Charmer,” she muttered, making him laugh.

“Well, they do say I’m rather good at it,” he replied smugly. She snorted, smacking him lightly on the shoulder.

“Merlin help the poor woman who ends up with you,” she joked, even as she slid under his arm and leant into him, heading back up towards the castle doors.

.-.-.

The castle was awake early Monday morning, students gathering in the Entrance Hall with trunks and pet cages ready to go down to Hogsmeade station and catch the Express home. Tony Stark was not one of those students; he didn’t really have much to go home to, and he could do his Stark Industries work from school. He had permission from Fury to leave when and as needed to check in with things in the offices, but otherwise he was happy to stay in school and keep Bruce company. Steve, however, was heading back with Bucky, as he did every year. Tony was currently hoping that if he held on tight enough, the blonde wouldn’t be able to leave. “It’s only four weeks, Tony. I’ll be back before you even start to miss me,” Steve insisted, amused as he tried to pry his boyfriend off him.

“I’ve already started to miss you and you’re not even gone yet,” Tony argued petulantly. Steve couldn’t help but smile at that, tugging Tony into a kiss.

“You’re such a sap,” Steve muttered fondly. The Ravenclaw didn’t deny it, not letting go of Steve’s waist. “I’ll text you, and call you every day. And Bruce has your Christmas present, so he’ll make sure you don’t open it until Christmas Day.” Tony whined in protest, pouting.

“Aww, honey, totally not fair. Your present is in your trunk, I had Bucky put it in for me. I know you’re too damn goody-two-shoes to open it before Christmas,” he teased, making Steve grin as he hugged Tony tightly. 

“I need to get going,” Steve said eventually, cheek pressed to his boyfriend’s hair. “Don’t want the train to leave without me.”

“Would that be such a bad thing?” Tony argued, earning a light swat.

“Yes, it would,” Steve insisted, chuckling. “Come on, walk me to the hall.” Tony sighed, but let go of Steve enough to walk beside him. He paused on the steps before letting Steve join the rest of their friends who were going home for the holidays, leaning up to kiss him, uncaring that half the school was watching. Steve was, by now, too used to Tony kissing him in public to bother too much, lips moving gently against Tony’s own. “I’ll miss you,” he murmured softly, stroking Tony’s lightly stubbled cheek. 

“I’ll miss you too, handsome. Have fun with your Mom and Bucky.” Steve smiled, kissing him briefly once more before grabbing his trunk and hauling it over to stand between Bucky and Pepper, the other Gryffindor boy clapping him on the back. Tony leant against the banister, watching them for several moments, before turning away to go find Bruce. They had science to do.


	11. Animal Instinct

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a somewhat reckless idea from Clint, the Avengers start a plan to aid their furriest member; without his knowledge, of course.

Clint absently hung from the trapeze swing by his knees, casting light spells at targets that appeared out of nowhere. It was a favourite activity of his since they’d found the Room, but he was barely even paying attention, merely using it to pass the time while he waited for the others to turn up. Phil was sat on the couch below, watching him, and Natasha was perched on a chair, occasionally sending hexes his way just to catch him out. 

The door opened, and Thor and Jane turned up with Sif, Peggy and the boys. None of them seemed surprised by Clint’s position, but he neatly flipped down anyway; it was rude to trapeze when you had guests. Within the next few minutes, the others turned up, and Tony glared at Clint when he saw the Hufflepuff. “Why isn’t Bruce here?” he asked, eyebrows raised. “I am not okay with Bruce not being here.”

“This is the kind of thing I don’t want to talk about in front of him,” Clint began to explain, and Tony’s glare darkened.

“If you have a problem with him, Barton, you’d better go through me first, because I swear to Merlin—“

“Relax, Stark! This is about helping him,” Phil cut in calmly. Tony let out a long breath, visibly deflating. 

“Well, okay then,” he said curtly, as if he hadn’t just been ranting. “Carry on.” Clint snorted, and Phil swept an arm as if to say ‘the floor is yours’. 

“I’ve been doing some research,” the archer began. “Into animagus forms. I’ve been looking at it since before we found out about Bruce — I thought it would be cool to turn into an animal — and then since he told us, I’ve been wondering. Bruce can’t have humans around when he transforms, right? But maybe if we were animals, we could hang out with him during the full moons and then we could distract him so he wouldn’t hurt himself.” Tony stared at him, jaw slightly slack.

“Why the hell didn’t I think of that?” he muttered, and Clint snorted.

“Because sometimes the obvious escapes you?” he retorted, though he was smiling. “So you think it could work?”

“I think it’s worth a shot. And either way, it’ll be pretty cool to be an animagus, right?” Tony pointed out, smirking. “It’s a spell, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Clint agreed, nodding. “There’s one spell to learn your form, and then there’s a mix of meditation and spellwork to learn how to access it. It’s not easy, and you can’t choose your form.”

“You mean we don’t get to pick what we can be? Lame,” Darcy remarked, frowning. “What if we end up something really stupid like a flamingo or whatever?”

“Then you don’t have to go through with learning to access your form. You guys don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, I just thought it would be a good idea for those who do,” Clint told her, shrugging his shoulders. “I mean, I learnt the spell, so if you want to find out your form and then decide…”

“I’m totally in,” Tony declared without hesitation, making Clint smirk. Pulling his wand, the Hufflepuff muttered the spell with a quick, complicated wand motion, and Tony was covered in a glowing blue light. There was a brief pause, before that light left him and pooled on the floor in front of him, rising to form the image of a grey-brown animal that looked like a cross between a fox and a wolf. “Awesome. What is it?” Tony asked, staring at the animal as it sat, staring straight back at him.

“It’s a coyote,” Phil told him, studying the animal carefully. Tony’s grin widened, and the animal faded away.

“Sweet. Okay, okay, books on coyotes…” He turned expectantly to the nearest wall, and sure enough a bookshelf appeared, full of books on various animals. Tony found one on canines and sat in the nearest armchair, flipping it open. 

“Do me next,” Steve requested, stepping forward. Clint nodded, casting the spell once more, and the light formed a German Shepherd dog with its head held high. 

“Aw, awesome, we’re both canines!” Tony crowed happily, shifting over so Steve could join him in his chair with a book on breeds of domestic dogs. Tasha requested to go next, her light forming the small image of a spider, which she had to kneel down to get a good look at. 

“The Black Widow spider,” she informed them with a smirk that sent shivers down the spine of every male in the room. “Not much help to Bruce, but will still be cool to learn how to transform.” As she went to get her book, Phil tapped Clint on the shoulder, gesturing to himself. Clint smiled proudly at the large elk that formed out of Phil’s light, seeing the faintly surprised look on his boyfriend’s face. Elk were strong, noble creatures, and Clint thought it suited Phil perfectly. 

Thor turned out to be a large brown bear, which wasn’t too surprising, and Jane smiled happily at the gambolling otter her own light became. Darcy fist-pumped when she found out she was a fox, and Rhodey grinned widely at the panther in front of him. Pepper was a red squirrel, which Tony teased her for because it matched her hair, earning a smack across the back of the head. Steve could tell Bucky was let down by his eagle form, despite the grin on his face; knowing his friend, he’d have wanted something big that he could run around as. Still, Steve thought it suited him. Peggy gained plenty of ribbing — mostly from Bucky — when her form appeared as a cougar, until she reminded him that her form could probably eat his without too much trouble.

Sif seemed fairly pleased to be a hedgehog, and Fandral turned bright red at the peacock that formed from his light, attempting to keep a straight face while the others teased him for his preening. Volstagg and Hogun were a meerkat and a bobcat respectively, and when they were both looking for books Tony looked up at Clint. “Everyone’s done but you now, Barton. I’d have thought you’d go first.”

“Spell can’t be performed on yourself,” Clint explained. “Probably a failsafe to make sure you don’t try this thing alone.” Tony nodded, getting to his feet.

“Teach it to me.” Tony, being Tony Stark, took barely ten minutes to learn a spell that had taken Clint almost two weeks to learn, and performed it on the Hufflepuff with the rest of the room watching. When an animal formed, Clint couldn’t help but snicker.

“Wow, okay, I totally saw that one coming,” he said amusedly, watching the hawk soar across the room before fading. “Awesome; guess I’ll really earn the nickname ‘Hawkeye’.” He glanced at his watch, cursing. “We should get going, it’s almost dinner time and Bruce will be suspicious if we’re all gone at the same time.”

“I’ll do some research on the transformation process, email it to you all,” Tony assured them, the books disappearing as they all got up. “And maybe see if there’s a potion that will speed things up a little.” He took Steve’s hand, dragging him out of the chair and towards the doors. “Come, Steve! First, food, then we science!” he exclaimed dramatically, striking a pose. Steve rolled his eyes, wrapping an arm around Tony’s waist and picking him up, still in his dramatic pose as they left the room.

“Why am I friends with him, my god,” Rhodey muttered, shaking his head. He left with Pepper, who was trying to persuade Bucky to learn how to transform, insisting it would be useful even if he couldn’t run with Bruce. Darcy was insisting to Sif that they and Pepper were now woodland BFFs and it would be awesome, her voice echoing through the corridor even as she attempted to be quiet. Clint looked to Phil and Tasha, who were the last ones left in the room with him. 

“Am I the only one who finds it hilarious that the girl dating a girl is a Black Widow?” Clint queried, knowing better than to put a label on Tasha’s sexuality. The last person who had called her a lesbian had needed their nose re-set by Healer McCoy. 

“No, I definitely find it amusing. But also great that once I learn to transform, none of you will ever be able to see a spider without wondering if I’m eavesdropping on you,” she added conversationally, slipping her arm through Phil’s as the prefect took Clint’s hand. Clint gulped, sharing a look with his boyfriend and making a mental note to see if there was a way of warding against spiders. Or animagi.


	12. Determination Pays Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky has always had luck with the ladies. Except when he needs it the most.

Bucky had been unusually quiet recently, and it was beginning to worry Steve. He hadn’t been obviously down, or seemed upset, just more… thoughtful. Bucky didn’t do thoughtful, not unless something was wrong. “You okay, man?” Steve queried quietly as they settled down to bed one evening. Bucky raised an eyebrow, giving him a grin.

“Yeah, fine,” he insisted, only to falter when Steve gave him an expectant look. “Okay, not so fine,” he admitted. Steve waited patiently for Bucky to tell him what was wrong, watching his friend run a hand through his hair, making it stick out in tufts. “How would you feel if I, uh, asked Peggy out?” the shorter boy blurted hurriedly. “I mean, you used to have that crazy thing for her, and she’s always kinda been your girl.”

“Buck, that was like two years ago! I’m way over that, I’m with Tony now,” Steve pointed out with a chuckle. They both knew that he felt far more for Tony than he had ever felt for Peggy. “And if she is my girl, it’s just as friends. I think it’d be great if you asked her out; you could do with someone to keep you on the straight and narrow,” he teased. Bucky glared lightly in mock-offence, though he was smiling.

“Really? You wouldn’t mind?” Steve rolled his eyes, tossing a pair of balled up socks at his best friend.

“Of course not, you moron, why would I? You know that if you hurt her feelings I snap you in half, best friend or not, so we’re all good here.” Bucky snorted, nodding emphatically.

“Oh, all too well, my friend.” His smile softened, and he laid down, tugging his duvet up to his chin. “Thanks, soldier.”

“Good luck with her, man, that’s all I can say,” Steve replied, burrowing into his own bedding. Peggy wouldn’t be like all those other girls who fell into Bucky’s arms with just a wink and a smile. Steve thought it’d be good for his friend; Peggy would make him work for it.

.-.-.

Steve was lucky to be present for Bucky’s first attempt at asking out Peggy; it was, in short, a train wreck. “Hey, baby,” the Gryffindor started out with a cocky smirk, and Peggy looked at him flatly, unimpressed.

“What do you want, Barnes? I’m busy,” she asked shortly. Bucky’s smirk didn’t falter, and he sidled closer in an attempt to place an arm around her shoulders, which he quickly aborted when she bent to get a textbook from her bag, almost hitting him in the face with it when she straightened up.

“I was wondering if you felt like escorting me on a date tomorrow evening, since I’m free.” Steve resisted the urge to groan, burying his face in his hands. Really, Bucky ought to know better by now. 

“No, actually, I think I’ll pass,” Peggy replied conversationally, making Steve snicker when Bucky blinked, taken aback. “Now if that’s all I have some homework to do, and you’re in my way.”

“I, uh, wait, what? You’re saying no?” Bucky stuttered, confused. Peggy nodded, forcibly shoving him further down the desk so she could set up her parchment.

“Oh, good, you do understand English. Please leave, I can’t do my homework if you’re sat there.” She glanced over at Steve, who was stifling laughter with his knuckles pressed to his lips, and the brunette gave him a short glare. 

“Because I’m so distracting in my handsomeness, right?” Bucky presumed smugly, leaning back on one arm in a carefully rehearsed move that pushed his chest out, showing off his pecs and abs through his thin white school shirt. Steve could see the masked disappointment on his friend’s face when Peggy barely even looked at him.

“No, because the longer you sit there the more tempting it is to hit you with this textbook, and I don’t think you can afford to lose any more brain cells as it is,” Peggy told him evenly, making Steve lose his battle against laughter.

“Okay, _ouch_ ,” Bucky muttered under his breath, pride clearly ruffled. “Whatever, doll. I’ll see you later when you’re not otherwise occupied. Coming, Steve?” He hopped off the desk, clearly heading to the dorms, and Steve shook his head.

“Nah, maybe in a little while Buck, I have some reading to do,” he said, holding up his book apologetically. Bucky huffed, but nodded, almost stomping up to the dorm room. When he was out of sight, Peggy giggled.

“Did that really just happen?” she asked, and Steve nodded, tugging at his fringe.

“I never realised how ridiculous Bucky’s flirting technique is until he tried it on someone who actually doesn’t care,” he replied, amused. He should be taking his friend’s side, but… it was Bucky’s fault for expecting Peggy to fall for that crap. “You could’ve been a little nicer, though. He’s been planning this for weeks.” Peggy raised an eyebrow at him, bewildered.

“He’s been planning for weeks and _that_ was the best he could come up with?” she asked, amazed. Steve shrugged, offering her a wry smile.

“Works on every other girl in this joint. I just thought he’d know enough by now to know you’re not like every other girl in this joint,” he reasoned, making her blush. His phone bleeped, interrupting the conversation, and he couldn’t stop the sappy smile that crossed his lips at the picture message Tony had sent. The Ravenclaw was curled up in bed with his tablet, form swamped by Steve’s burgundy Gryffindor quidditch team hoodie. ‘ _You left this here last night. Mine now xx_ ’ the text underneath read. 

“Oh, Merlin, I know that look. Steve, don’t forget, you have work to do. Work that doesn’t involve daydreaming about Tony all the time,” Peggy teased, and this time it was Steve’s turn to blush. He tapped out a quick reply and pocketed the device, hiding his burning face behind his book. He’d go up in a little while and see how Bucky was doing.

.-.-.

Bucky’s attempts got more and more hopeless as time went on. He tried everything; flowers, chocolate, he even hexed a bunch of Slytherins to serenade her at dinner. Every day for a week, he asked her out, and every single time she turned him down embarrassingly. He didn’t know how to cope with rejection; it had never happened to him before! The only time in the past he’d been rejected was in third year, when he’d asked if a sixth year girl was free that evening only for her to respond ‘why, you need a babysitter?’. All her friends had laughed, and he hadn’t been able to show his face in the common room for a week. 

By Saturday, a full week from the disastrous first attempt, Peggy finally slapped him when he made a comment about her chest filling out her quidditch jumper that was, okay, maybe a little crude. But he was desperate. It was clear he should probably give up, though, before she decided to hex him black and blue. Pulling away from the rest of the team after he’d showered and changed, Bucky gave Steve a small, half-hearted grin. “Could you take my stuff back up? I’m gonna go for a walk, clear my head,” he said softly, and Steve nodded.

“Sure thing, Buck. Here, it’s cold out, borrow this.” He reached into his pocket, pulling out a dark blue and silver beanie hat, frowning. “Hmm. Could’ve sworn I had mine in here— Tony,” he added with a sigh, shaking his head in exasperation. He handed the hat to Bucky anyway, who gave it a disparaging look but jammed it on his head; Steve was right, it was cold outside. 

“You need to stop letting your boyfriend steal your clothes, soldier,” Bucky teased, handing Steve his quidditch bag. Steve hoisted it over his shoulder with his own as if they were lighter than feathers. “You’ll have nothing left to wear.”

“I think that’s his plan,” Steve replied in amusement, slightly pink-cheeked. “I’ll see you later, Buck. Don’t stay out too late.” Bucky nodded, splitting away from his friend to head towards the edge of the forest, the leather of his boots darkening from the rain-soaked grass. Kicking at a fallen pine cone, he shoved his hands in his pockets, glancing at the overcast sky. He hoped it wouldn’t rain, that would completely ruin his brooding. 

“You know, blue isn’t really your colour.” His head snapped up at the voice, and he resisted the urge to scowl when he saw Peggy walking towards him, out of her uniform with her bag over her shoulder. 

“Yeah, well, Tony clearly thinks it’s Steve’s, so that’s what I’m stuck with,” he replied, and she smirked at the explanation of where the hat had come from. Tony was one of those people who tried to be possessive by having their boyfriend wear their clothes, but as most of his clothes didn’t fit Steve decently enough for him to wear them in public, it was mostly limited to his Ravenclaw hat and scarf. Bucky would never admit that he was secretly looking forward to seeing what Tony would do in the summer; possibly tattoo ‘Property of Tony Stark’ on Steve’s forehead, he was quite sure that hadn’t been ruled out yet. “If you’ve come to yell at me, don’t bother. I know I was a jerk — hell, I’ve been a jerk all week to you. But it usually works! I guess I’m just so used to getting what I want when it comes to girls that when I didn’t I… got a little angry,” he admitted sheepishly. Peggy didn’t say anything, and he was surprised when his mouth opened again. “I knew you’d never fall for my lines but I just didn’t know what to say and then I figured that hey, if you were shouting at me for being a douchebag, at least it was attention, right? But that clearly wasn’t winning me any favours and I’d like to apologise now because I didn’t mean to but I just really, really like you and I should’ve known that of course the first girl I have _actual_ feelings for is the first one who won’t put up with my bullshit.” 

He went bright red when he finally got himself to stop talking. “I didn’t mean to say all that out loud,” he added, not meeting Peggy’s eyes. She probably thought he was a giant idiot now, even more than she did already. He heard leaves crunching underfoot as she walked closer to him, and his eyes went wide as her lips briefly pressed to his, so quickly he thought he might have imagined it. 

“Maybe if you’d said all that in the first place, you’d have saved yourself a lot of trouble. You’re actually quite sweet when you’re being honest,” she told him, smiling. “In a bit of a priggish way.” He snorted, lips quirking ruefully.

“You British and your compliments,” he joked, earning a swat to the shoulder. “If I promise to try and keep being honest, will you go to Hogsmeade with me next weekend, please?” Peggy hummed thoughtfully, dragging it out as long as she could.

“Yes, I suppose.” He blinked, surprised at the answer, then broke into a wide grin.

“Seriously? Sweet!” He paused, suddenly suspicious. “You’re not going to stand me up and leave me standing in the Entrance Hall like a tool, are you?” The brunette girl laughed, rolling her eyes and slipping her arm through his.

“No, no, as tempting as it is. Now, are you going to be a proper gentleman and walk me back to the castle, or do I have to rethink my choices?” He straightened up, offering her a smile as they started walking. 

“Gentleman, ma’am,” he replied obediently, making her snicker. “Here, let me take your bag.”

“I can carry it myself,” she protested, but he ignored her and slipped it from her shoulder, swinging it onto his own.

“Yes, but a gentleman always carries a lady’s bag,” he told her with a lopsided grin. She laughed, giving him an appraising look.

“Yes, I think you’ll do.” Bucky’s grin widened as she allowed him to take her hand, already imagining the look on Steve’s face when he told the blonde he actually had a date with Peggy Carter.


	13. Still Not Over You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loki, in an attempt to distract himself from his thoughts about his brother, decides to ask Sif out for Valentine’s Day. He turns out to be less than successful.

Loki really owed Darcy a thank you of extreme proportions; not that he’d ever suck up his pride and give her one. In the months since the Yule Ball, he’d seen far more of his childhood friends than he had his entire two and a half years of Hogwarts previously. He still hadn’t really spoken much to Thor, preferring to catch Sif and the boys when his brother was off with his other friends or his girlfriend, but they’d had a few conversations that seemed to mean the world to the older boy. Loki was just trying to resist the urge to either hit him or kiss him, settling for sharp words that probably hurt Thor more than he would’ve liked, but he needed to establish distance. Just because he was spending time with Sif, Fandral, Volstagg and Hogun didn’t mean he was willing to embrace his brother. 

Sif was his usual companion as of late, while the older boys began their studying for OWLs — or at least pretended to study, for the sake of their teachers. The Gryffindor girl had only become more witty with age, and Loki actually found himself smiling in her presence. It reminded him of when he’d been nine and she ten, and all the boys had been away at Hogwarts leaving them alone to play together. She hadn’t seemed to mind, and he’d developed quite the crush on her as only a nine year-old boy could. While those feelings weren’t returning, overpowered by his feelings for Thor, he did begin to wonder if trying to rekindle them might be worth the effort.

He discussed the matter with Darcy — his only real source of relationship advice, who despite having never had a boyfriend read just about every magazine in question and had plenty of older friends who had been in relationships — who agreed that it was worth a shot, though fruitlessly warned him not to hurt Sif. Loki glared at her for that; like he was likely to willingly hurt the one person who had never treated him like an outcast. Still, that settled, Loki did what any good Slytherin would do when faced with a problem; he began to plot.

Since it was February, he decided his best bet was to go down the Valentine’s Day route; plenty of other couples were likely to be in Hogsmeade for the weekend, and hopefully the romance in the air would help him along his way. He was at a slight loss as to how to actually ask her on said date, but figured that was best done spontaneously. His perfect chance came when they were in one of the empty classrooms near the Slytherin dungeons, having decided the library was full of far too many people studying for OWLs and NEWTs. Neither of them had that much work, and Loki found himself distracted, constantly glancing up at the Gryffindor as she bent over her parchment, dark hair loose in a shining curtain for once. “Is everything alright, little serpent?” she asked, tucking her hair behind her ear and looking up with a smile. He flushed at being caught out, biting his lip nervously. 

“I was, uh, wondering if I might escort you to Hogsmeade on Saturday. For Valentine’s day,” he clarified, heart beating fast against his ribs. Sif seemed surprised, but her smile widened, her pale cheeks reddening faintly.

“I would like that very much, Loki.” He blinked, shocked.

“Really?” he blurted before he could stop himself, and she giggled.

“Yes!” she insisted, rolling her eyes. “There are so very few gentlemen with manners in this castle, I have to take them when they offer.”

“Fandral is a gentleman with manners,” he reminded her, but she merely snorted, raising an eyebrow.

“Fandral is a flirt and a harlot, and I watched him eat worms when he was seven years old. Surprisingly, I’m not attracted to him in the slightest,” she told him dryly, making him laugh softly.

“Point taken. Merlin, I’d forgotten about the worms.” Thor had tried to convince Loki to eat some — apparently Hogun had dared Volstagg, and it had all escalated from there — but he’d merely called them all imbeciles and gone to seek refuge in the library with Mother. 

“I should be so lucky,” Sif sighed wistfully, grinning at him. “Come on, then; you told me that Potions essay is due first thing tomorrow, and you’re barely even halfway through! Far be it from me to distract you from your homework.” Loki sighed, grumbling under his breath, but it was halfhearted at best as he looked back down at his barely-started essay. Things were starting to look up.

.-.-.

No one noticed the shy Slytherin boy waiting in the corner of the Entrance Hall, all too absorbed in their own excitement. Red and pink streamers decorated the castle, and almost everyone queueing up to go to Hogsmeade was part of a couple, holding hands and staring dopily into their partner’s eyes, love well and truly in the air. Loki hung by the stairs and kept his eyes peeled, hoping no one he knew spotted him. He didn’t want to have to explain his presence should Sif not show up, and he wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t. “There you are!” His head snapped up, and there was a fair amount of relief in his smile as he spotted Sif approaching. She wore dark grey leggings with tall black boots and a dark red knitted dress, her hair up in its usual ponytail. 

“You look radiant,” he told her politely, drawing a smile to her face and some colour to her cheeks.

“Thank you. You look rather dashing yourself,” she replied, making him flush. “Shall we join the queue?” He nodded, offering an arm to her, and they joined the group of people waiting for carriages to Hogsmeade. He felt somewhat awkward, standing there surrounded by couples with a girl he’d known his entire life and yet somehow had a complete inability to talk to. He opened his mouth several times, only to close it again when no words came out, and Sif offered him a fond smile. “I do hope it doesn’t snow today; the weather’s looking rather grim,” she mused, glancing up at the sky as they stepped outside. 

“I’m just glad it’s not raining,” Loki replied wryly. “Besides, I like the snow.”

“I know you do,” Sif agreed, smile widening when Loki helped her into the carriage as a gentleman should. “But should the snow get too bad, the carriages won’t run and we’ll have to walk back. I got caught out last year with Hogun, and let me tell you, the walk back isn’t fun in three feet of snow.” Loki winced, remembering the day several people had come back from Hogsmeade soaked to the bone and covered in snow, spending hours in front of the fire in the common room. He’d only been a second year, and hadn’t been eligible for Hogsmeade visits at the time. 

“No, I can’t imagine it would be,” he murmured with a frown, her shoulder bumping against hers as the carriage went over a bump. They were sharing it with two other couples, all sixth and seventh years by the looks of them, and thankfully they didn’t pay any attention to Loki and Sif. “Was there anything in particular you wanted to do today?” Sif hummed thoughtfully, shrugging.

“Not that I can think of. I’d like to go to Scrivenshaft’s — I’m down to one quill, I think Hogun’s been borrowing mine again — but other than that, I have no preference. How about you?”

“I promised Darcy I’d bring her back some chocolate from Honeyduke’s, so we’ll have to stop by there, but I hadn’t planned past that. Perhaps lunch at the Three Broomsticks, then just see where things take us?” Darcy was staying back at the castle, wanting to stay well out of the Valentine’s madness, but he was ever her errand boy and apparently her chocolate stash was low. Why she didn’t just steal Barton’s like she usually did, he didn’t know. 

“That sounds like a plan,” Sif agreed brightly, stepping out of the carriage as they reached the village, taking Loki’s arm once more. “I have to say, I’m glad you didn’t suggest Puddifoot’s.” Loki grimaced at the mention of the teashop.

“You couldn’t get me in there if you paid me,” he declared vehemently, making her laugh.

“It’s ghastly, isn’t it? Merlin knows why people go there, especially on Valentine’s Day. It’s awful enough every other day of the year!” 

“I suppose some people like that sort of thing,” he mused, shrugging. He was glad he’d brought his Slytherin scarf with him, as the wind whipped at his face. He cast a warming charm over both of them; while it was the gentlemanly thing to offer Sif his coat, he’d surely freeze to death without it, and she probably wouldn’t appreciate that. “Or at least pretend to like it for the sake of their partners.” Even as he spoke, he could see a Gryffindor boy in Sif’s year being dragged towards the teashop by a happy-looking Hufflepuff girl, a look of dread on his face that he didn’t mask very well.

“That can only end in disaster,” Sif murmured, her eyes on the same couple. “Come on, let’s get to Honeydukes before it gets crowded with boys buying chocolates for their dates after lunch.” Loki nodded, and the pair detoured towards the sweet shop, still arm in arm. Loki bypassed the many shelves full of chocolate in pink and red wrappings, heading straight for the normal Honeyduke’s bars and grabbing three of Darcy’s favourites, as well as one for himself. Should she want any more, she could wait until the next Hogsmeade weekend and get it herself. 

“Did you want anything?” he asked Sif, who was eyeing the fudge contemplatively. 

“Oh, no, it’s fine,” she insisted, though she grinned when he grabbed a pack of the cherry-chocolate fudge for her, adding it to his own purchases. “My favourite.”

“I know,” he told her, a half-smile at his lips. “Do you really think I’d have survived this long in your good books without knowing your favourite flavour of fudge?” She laughed lightly, shoving his shoulder playfully. 

“Bratling,” she teased, walking with him towards the cashier. “How come you’re the only one of the boys that seems to? Thor is still buying me strawberry after all these years.” Loki pushed away the tightening in his chest at the mention of his brother’s name, keeping the smile on his face.

“My Lady, I never said Thor was in your good books,” he retorted, smirking. She giggled, leaning into him slightly as he paid for the sweets, gathering them in a paper bag that he managed to fit in his coat pocket. 

“Oh, Loki, your wit never fails to amuse me,” she murmured fondly, making him smile. Sif was one of the few people who appreciated that; others just told him his silver tongue would get him into trouble one day. 

They slipped out of the shop as it began to get more crowded, the Valentine’s-themed chocolates practically flying off the shelves. “Really though, surely if you were going to buy your date chocolate, you’d have pre-ordered it to give to them at the beginning of the date?” he mused, frowning.

“Some people are buying them to save and give to their partner actually on Valentine’s Day,” Sif pointed out. Valentine’s Day wasn’t until Wednesday, but that meant little to Hogwarts students; Valentine’s was whenever the Hogsmeade weekend said it was. He looked up when Sif waved, following her gaze to see Peggy and Bucky walking hand in hand on the other side of the courtyard. 

“I didn’t know those two were together,” Loki said, surprised. Sif shrugged, looking back at him. 

“It’s fairly new. I’m sure you noticed his atrocious flirting?” He nodded, and she smiled wryly. “Well, apparently he managed to say something that wasn’t insulting, so Peggy decided to give him a chance. I give it another two weeks at most. Or another two hours, possibly, if Bucky keeps staring at that seventh year girl.” Looking back over at the other couple, he could see Barnes was indeed eyeing up a seventh year Ravenclaw girl, much to the annoyance of both her date and his own. 

“Carter deserves better than that lout.” Sif hummed in agreement, and he nudged open the door to Scrivenshaft’s.

“She does, but I can see where she’s coming from. Bucky can be fairly sweet when he’s not trying to impress anyone. He’s a boy, and he needs to grow up a little before he can be truly worth a girl’s time,” she remarked. Loki raised a dark eyebrow at her, amused.

“He’s older than I am, are you saying I’m not worth your time?” he queried, a lightness to his tone that let her know he was only playing.

“Oh, you know that’s not what I’m saying at all,” she huffed with a roll of her eyes. “We both know you’ve always been older than your years. Sometimes it feels like you’re older than all of us.” He shrugged, not sure what to say to that, and silence fell between them as Sif picked out some quills and a new bottle of ink. 

“Lunch?” he suggested once she’d paid. She nodded, smiling, and her hand slipped into his once they stepped outside, surprising him. He’d only ever held hands with Darcy before, and that was usually her dragging him somewhere at a hundred miles an hour, so he didn’t think it counted. It was… nice. 

The Three Broomsticks was fairly packed when they arrived, but they managed to find a booth in the corner that was empty. “I’ll go get drinks,” he told the Gryffindor girl, who nodded and picked up a menu. He slipped away to the bar, letting out a long breath. So far, so good; maybe dating Sif would actually work. He was enjoying himself, and Sif seemed to be enjoying herself. What more did he need?

Taking two butterbeers back to their table, he took the menu Sif offered to him and peered over the options, rolling his eyes at the ‘Valentine’s Special’ outlined in little red hearts. Still, half-price for Hogwarts students was enough of an incentive, he supposed, and it did look rather good. “As much as it sickens me to say this, I think I might go for the Valentine’s Special. How about you?” Sif laughed, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. 

“I was going to go for the same, actually. I suppose we might as well embrace the day, even if it is rather… over the top.” That was one thing he liked about Sif; she wasn’t the type of girl to go mad over Valentine’s Day and expect cards and flowers and chocolate. She was pragmatic. 

The waitress came to take their order, giving them both a lewd grin and wink that made Loki blush when he told her they wanted two Valentine’s Specials. The Slytherin boy found he couldn’t quite meet his date’s eyes after that, having completely forgotten that on a romantic date people were expected to do things like kiss. Kissing Sif was… something he’d told himself years ago, back when he’d been half in love with her, that he was never to do. He wondered what his younger self would say if he could see him now. Still, he hadn’t kissed anyone before, but he rather thought he’d like doing it with Sif. 

Their meals arrived surprisingly quickly, especially considering the amount of people in the pub, and they dug in quite happily. The butterbeer was warming him from the inside out, and he belatedly cancelled the warming charm; there was no chance of catching a chill indoors. Conversation was fairly sparse, but the silence wasn’t uncomfortable as they ate. Loki couldn’t stop himself from surveying other couples in the pub, making little comments that sent Sif into fits of stifled giggles, even as she scolded him lightly. He grinned to himself, remarking on the obvious blindness that Hufflepuff boy was suffering to not notice his girlfriend’s awful taste in knitwear, when the door opened once more and he faltered. Thor entering a room was impossible not to notice, even in a room as crowded as this, and Jane tucked under his arm did nothing to diminish that. She was laughing, her cheeks flushed pink from the cold and her arm around Thor’s waist, and the blonde boy was beaming widely, clearly enjoying himself on his date. Loki could see a pink heart-shaped box peeking from the top of Jane’s bag, and recognised it as one of the overpriced Valentine’s chocolate boxes from Honeyduke’s. Of course Thor would think those a perfect gift for his lady-love. 

He should’ve expected this, of course. Thor was hardly likely to let Valentine’s Day fall by the wayside, not when he was with Jane. And Hogsmeade was a surprisingly small village. Still, all the logic in the world couldn’t change the way his lungs seemed bereft of air, and everything seemed far too loud all of a sudden. “Loki, are you alright?” He jolted at the voice, turning to see Sif eyeing him in concern.

“Yes, yes,” he insisted, shaking his head. “Just… lost in thought.” Sif didn’t look convinced, but she let it go, and Loki was free to stare at Thor once more. The older boy had pulled Jane into a kiss, and it was making his stomach churn, but he couldn’t bring himself to look away. When the pair parted, Thor peered around for a free table, his considerable height allowing him to see over the heads of the rest of the patrons, and Loki realised all too late how visible he and Sif were. 

“Brother!” Thor exclaimed, his voice audible across the pub. Loki cursed under his breath as Thor and Jane began making their way over, and Sif’s eyebrows rose.

“Fancy meeting you here,” she greeted, smiling. “Please, join us.” Loki resisted the urge to whack his head on the table, obligingly shuffling to the side to allow Thor to join him on his bench, Jane sliding in beside Sif. 

“Brother, I did not know you and the Lady Sif were romantically inclined!” Thor exclaimed, clapping him on the back with a grin. Loki didn’t meet the blonde’s eyes, looking down at his half-eaten meal.

“It’s fairly new. This is our first date,” Sif supplied, not blushing in the slightest. 

“Ah, and you could not have picked a better day for it! My Lady Jane has been educating me on the rituals of the Day of Valentine, it has been most enjoyable.” Loki sighed, rolling his eyes. Odin and Frigga really hadn’t done Thor many favours keeping him so isolated growing up. They lived in Denmark, but it really wasn’t the whole other planet that Thor’s mannerisms made it seem. 

“Yeah, it’s been fun,” Jane agreed, grinning brightly. “How about you guys?”

“Today has been very entertaining,” Sif told the other girl, sipping at her butterbeer. “Be proud of your brother, Thor; he has grown into quite the charmer.” Thor beamed proudly, his hand on Loki’s shoulder once more, and to the Slytherin boy the touch practically burned through his coat and shirt. 

“I am always proud of my brother, but this pleases me very much. Loki, I didn’t know you had it in you to take on a vixen such as Sif! Perhaps I underestimated you,” he joked, ducking the swat Sif aimed at his head over the table, and a lump grew in Loki’s throat that he couldn’t quite swallow away. He couldn’t do this. He couldn’t sit with Sif and Thor and Jane and pretend that he was happy to see the blonde on a date with his girlfriend, pretend it wasn’t tearing him apart inside. He needed to get out. 

“Sif, my dear, I think we should leave Thor and his Lady to their date, don’t you?” he said somewhat stiffly, begging Sif with his eyes to agree with him. She frowned, lips pursing, but nodded after a few moments.

“Indeed; we’re quite finished here, and we wouldn’t want to intrude.” Thor frowned as Loki stood, not moving to let him out.

“Nonsense! We would be honoured to have you join us!” Loki forced himself to place a hand on the Gryffindor’s shoulder, giving him a look.

“Brother,” he murmured, the word feeling like tar in his mouth. “Valentine’s Day is typically spent without the company of other couples. It is more romantic,” he explained quietly, watching Thor’s eyes widen in understanding. 

“Ah, I see,” he replied, lips twisting in an amused grin as he sent his younger brother a wink. “Far be it from me to stifle the romance between you and Lady Sif. Enjoy the rest of your day, brother.” He stood to let Loki leave, and the Slytherin didn’t bother trying to explain that Thor had the wrong end of the stick, even as his face went red. 

He practically ran from the pub, Sif hot on his tail, and when they were outside she gripped his shoulder, turning him to face her. “Care to tell me what that was all about, then? I know you don’t like Thor, but would it really be so painful to spend a few minutes more with him?” The lump in his throat returned, and his eyes began to sting. 

“I can’t. I’m so sorry, Sif. This is all my fault, and I can’t do it.” Before she could say anything, he turned and ran, slipping through the crowd towards the Shrieking Shack, where he knew he’d get privacy. No one wanted to see a haunted house on Valentine’s Day. He ignored the damp grass and fell to his knees, blinking back tears with an angry snarl on his face. He should be stronger than this.

The arm around his shoulder made him jump and grab his wand on instinct, before he felt lips press to his temple. “Little serpent, what ails you?” He slumped into Sif’s embrace at her murmured words, having heard them far too many times in his lifetime. Before he could stop himself, everything was spilling out of his mouth without his consent; his feelings for Thor, how much it hurt knowing they would never be returned, and how he’d thought he could get rid of them by reminding himself of the crush he’d once had on her. 

“I’m an awful person,” he told her, voice croaky. “I’ve used you, and lied to you, and you don’t deserve any of it! And it hasn’t helped a jot; I still love my brother in a way I should not, and I’ve gained nothing from this! I’ve lost your friendship, and I don’t blame you for it, even if I can’t bear to lose you; the first friend I ever truly had.” Sif’s arm tightened around him, and she kissed his head once more.

“You haven’t lost my friendship, silly snake,” she told him, sounding choked even as she smiled. “You’d have to do far more than love Thor to be rid of me. I love you, Loki, as I always have, and as I always will.” She shifted, moving to sit opposite him so she could look him in the eye. “I am truly, truly sorry that I cannot do more to help you deal with your feelings, my serpent. But know this; there is nothing wrong with the way you feel. Thor is your brother in name, not blood, and to love him is no sin. I… I suppose I now understand why you avoid us Gryffindors so.”

“It’s nothing against you,” he told her hoarsely, wiping angrily at the tears on his reddened cheeks. “Or the boys. You’re all dear to me — even bloody Volstagg — but I just can’t face him, knowing I cannot have what I desire most in the world.” Sif stroked his hair, nodding.

“I understand, Loki, I do.” She sighed, shaking her head. “Sometimes I do despise Lord Odin for how he has treated you. Perhaps if he raised you both as his blood-sons, this would not have happened.” Loki snorted wryly, giving her a look. Even had he actually been blood-related to Odin, he doubted the man would’ve ever raised him as a true son. Loki was too different; he was the lone snake in a family of lions, and it showed. Add to that Thor’s status as the eldest and legitimate heir, and Odin had no reason to see Loki as anything more than a mild annoyance to be dealt with as needed.

“What do I do, Sif?” he asked, sounding for once all of his mere thirteen years. “I don’t want these feelings, they will never amount to anything, but I cannot rid myself of them. And while I have them, I cause Thor pain for some imagined wrong he believes to have dealt me. But he can never know the truth, or he would have real reason to despise me.”

“Thor would never despise you for feeling love, especially not towards him,” Sif insisted, making him scoff. 

“Even the kind of love that makes me wish to possess him in a way his Lady _Jane_ never could?” he retorted, lips in a twisted snarl.

“Even then,” Sif told him firmly. “Come, little serpent; let’s head back to the castle, where it is warm. Just because there is no romantic feeling does not mean our date has to come to an end.” She smiled sweetly at him, pulling him to his feet. “I have something to show you I believe you will enjoy. A part of the castle you have yet to discover.”

“How can you stand to look at me?” he asked, voice quiet and full of self-loathing. Sif cupped his cheek, meeting his eyes without hesitation.

“Because I see all the good in you that you never see in yourself,” she replied gently, smiling. “Now come; we have to get back quickly, before one of the others decides to head back and use the Room for some alone time.” She pulled him into a tight hug, kissing his forehead, then slid an arm through his and half-dragged him back towards the edge of the village, where carriages were waiting. Loki merely let her, trying to get a handle on himself. He truly had to stop underestimating Sif; she never ceased to surprise him.


	14. Freeing the Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Instead of revising for his OWLs, Tony decides to put his mental abilities to better use. Namely, curing lycanthropy. Because really, he’s kept Bruce hanging long enough.

The relaxed buzz of Christmas and Valentine’s day was definitely ending, and with the arrival of the Easter holidays came the reminder of impending exams. For the fifth years, it was especially prudent; their teachers had been harping on at them all year about the importance of doing well, but with exams only a few short months away, the nagging was almost unbearable. Pepper was proving invaluable, not only for Tony, having created study schedules, curriculum plans and note folders for everyone, using a photocopier provided by the Room. That didn’t stop most of them from freaking out, though, and most of their time was now spent revising. Almost all of them were staying over break to focus on their studies… except Tony.

Tony knew damn well that he could walk into any of his exams and get an O without even trying, so revision wasn’t really high on his list of priorities despite Pepper’s fretting. He was far more focused on the progress he was making with the lycanthropy cure. He only worked on it when Bruce wasn’t around, as he didn’t want another repeat of the last potion breakthrough he’d thought he’d made, but with the other boy off revising more often, Tony was left to work.

Every improvement he’d made to the potion over the past year was practically useless in the face of Bruce’s werewolf puberty, each potion designed to soothe the wolf being near-completely negated by the roiling hormones that were brought about by the change. He didn’t think it was meant to be this bad, and was beginning to wonder if the potion Bruce had taken the year before had something to do with it. Either way, he needed to find a solution before Bruce injured himself permanently. This time, he was certain he was onto something, but he couldn’t do it at school.

“What could possibly be more important than revising for your OWLs, Tony?” Pepper asked sharply as soon as he told her he wasn’t staying for the holiday. 

“Business, Pep. We both know I don’t need to revise,” he pointed out, earning her glare. 

“Some subjects, you do. And I’m your PA, I _know_ you haven’t got anything that urgent going on with Stark Industries,” she added. He gripped her by the shoulders, pecking her on the forehead as he shouldered his bag with his shrunken trunk in it. There was a reason he’d left it until the last minute to tell her. 

“Pepper, listen to me,” he said seriously, gaze boring into hers. “I have very, very important work that needs to be done as soon as possible, in my lab at home. Exams aren’t until the end of May, it is currently the end of March, I have two months, I’ll be fine. Trust me on this one.” He held her until she finally sighed, relaxing in his hold.

“Fine. If you get less than perfect results, it’ll be your own damn fault,” she grumbled, making him grin. 

“When have I ever done anything that’s less than perfect?” he retorted, winking as he released her. “Love you.” He moved to Bruce, bringing him into a hug. “Love you.” Steve was next, the blonde’s face amused as Tony eyed him up and down. “Definitely love you. You’re my favourite.” He leaned up for a long kiss, still marvelling that he could say ‘I love you’ and mean it romantically without wanting to curl in a ball and hide. Steve did that to him, he supposed.

“I love you too, Tony. Don’t work yourself sick, I want you back in as many pieces as you left in,” he joked, holding him close. 

“I promise I’ll remember to sleep and eat occasionally when JARVIS reminds me,” Tony assured, figuring that was probably the best he could manage. Steve rolled his eyes, but accepted it, and Tony turned towards the group getting the Express, joining them with one last wave over his shoulder.

.-.-.

Almost as soon as Tony arrived home — which was now London for him; he hadn’t set foot in the New York house since his parents had died — he ordered pizza and descended to his lab, pulling out the huge stack of notes he’d already compiled on the potion. He had about twenty different solutions to try, as well as notes to create a computer programme when he was finished that would allow him to brew potions theoretically before actually having to brew them. It would save so much money and time, and he’d probably make millions from it. But that was a whole other project. 

Over the whole three weeks of Easter break, Tony probably never would have slept if not for the regular phone calls from various friends, usually Steve, reminding him that it was night time. One of his housekeeping staff kindly brought food for him at six-hour intervals — that guy really deserved a pay rise — and his coffee pot never went empty. His staff were awesome. Still, he was almost at his wit’s end when he ran the compound for the fourteenth different version of the completed potion. Dripping several drops of the potion onto the testing paper, he watched the graphic of Bruce’s DNA on the screen, muttering prayers to gods he didn’t believe in under his breath. A progress bar began filling slowly, chronicling the potion taking affect on the DNA sample; he didn’t want to use the actual blood sample, as he had limited amounts and could hardly call Bruce for more, so he was running a test scenario. 

The bar hit 100% without the screen turning red, which meant he hadn’t killed Bruce. Text began filling the screen, and Tony read it quickly, his breath catching in his throat as it was replaced by a green-lit screen and the words ‘Test Successful: Lycanthropy Disease Destroyed’. “No way,” he murmured, gaping. “JARVIS, run it again to make sure.” He ran the compound a second time, getting the exact same results. “Yes. Yes! I am a genius!” He allowed himself a brief celebration dance — brief because he fell over when a dizzy-spell hit him. “And I need food. JARVIS, order Chinese from that little place I like, and compile the potion instructions to print, as well as the reasoning behind each ingredient and my notes on the brewing process.” If he was going to submit it to the Potions Guild, he’d need all the proper documentation. “I’m going to go shower.” He didn’t think he’d showered for at least five days, and by the LED calendar on his screen, he was due back at school in two days. 

Clean, in clothes that weren’t covered in potion stains, and with a large box of Chinese food in his hand, Tony sprawled out on the sofa in his living room, tablet balanced on the arm of the sofa as he read through the files JARVIS had compiled. Everything looked to be in order, and while Tony knew he should probably send it for testing like all other SI experiments, this was a personal project and he didn’t want the company getting their hands on it just yet. Not until he’d had the chance to tell Bruce about it. “Print the documents, save a backup on both my personal servers, and encrypt any and all research on it until further notice,” he instructed JARVIS, who made a noise of affirmation. Tony shut his tablet down and moved it to the coffee table, bringing up a movie on the TV. He had the rest of the evening to relax, and then tomorrow he should probably pack up and attempt to do some sort of revision, just so Pepper couldn’t nag.

.-.-.

Tony found Darcy and Loki on the Hogwarts Express back home, and ended up sat with them as they were the only people he really knew and he didn’t want to sit on his own. He didn’t know Loki that well, and thought he was kinda creepy, but he was Thor’s brother, and if Darcy liked him he couldn’t be too bad. “How come you went home, anyway?” Darcy asked, her feet propped up in Tony’s lap. “I’m surprised you could surgically remove yourself from Steve’s side.” He shot her a deadpan look, flicking her foot.

“Very funny, Lewis. I’m not _that_ bad with Steve,” he denied, though it was half-hearted. “I had some business stuff to take care of, it was easier to do it from home. Besides, between you and me, I just didn’t want to be around Pepper on a study rampage. I swear, she takes all the fun out of learning,” he groused. He was perfectly happy to study with Bruce and Jane, but they had a habit of going off on tangents as things interested them and ending up researching something completely unrelated to their original topic. Pepper wasn’t letting them study unsupervised for exams, and Tony just couldn’t deal with that. He’d felt a little sorry about abandoning Bruce and Jane to the redhead’s efforts, but they were both worried about exams too, and Pepper was far more focused on the Gryffindor boys. She and Peggy made a formidable team, and had deemed the Gryffindors the least likely to study on their own; Phil was just as studious and organised as Pepper, if not more so. 

“Ooh, yeah, I don’t blame you on that one. Why’s she making you study, anyway? You’re like, a super-genius.” Tony grinned at her, somewhat smug.

“My point exactly! But, as Pepper points out, I forget a lot of what’s on the curriculum because it’s easy and boring and no one really cares. Especially subjects I don’t really care about. I mean, who needs History of Magic, anyway?” he asked, rolling his eyes.

“Presumably, anyone planning on becoming a historian,” Loki piped up dryly. “Or anyone planning to work at the Ministry. I hear they like you to know your past in an effort to stop it repeating in future.” Tony shrugged, not looking convinced.

“Yeah, but there’s a difference between knowing your past and being able to name every single goblin involved in every goblin revolution since the beginning of time,” he retorted, actually drawing a snort from the quiet Slytherin boy.

They pulled into the station, and Tony rode in a carriage with Darcy and Loki up to the castle, parting with them in the doorway to the Great Hall to head over to the Ravenclaw table, sliding into the spot between Bruce and Jane. “Miss me?” he drawled with a smirk, draping an arm around Bruce’s shoulders and pulling him into a hug, allowing him to inhale his scent properly.

“Definitely. Pepper is secretly a demon from the darkest pits of hell,” Bruce declared, completely seriously, Jane nodding in agreement.

“I know, that’s exactly why I hired her. And exactly why I ran away,” he added, smirk widening. Grabbing the nearest plate of food, he started loading up his own plate. He was starving. “So I assume you got lots of revision done?” Bruce glared at him, and Tony grinned innocently. “Excellent, excellent. Hey, honeybear, I need to talk to you about some things after dinner, so don’t run off, okay?” Bruce looked confused, but nodded. Tony practically inhaled his dinner, wandering over to the Gryffindor table when he was finished to greet Steve, kissing the back of his neck while the blonde was mid-sentence in his conversation with Thor. 

“Good to see you too, Tony,” Steve said before turning around, a smile on his face. Tony leaned in, kissing him quickly.

“Hello, gorgeous. Just letting you know that as much as I would love to spend the evening making up for lost time with your sexy self, I have important science things to go over with Bruce so I’ll be in Ravenclaw all night. Hopefully good things,” he added at Steve’s concerned expression.

“Okay. No explosions in the dorm room, yeah?” Tony snickered, kissing his boyfriend’s cheek.

“Yes, sir.” Ducking back over to the Ravenclaw table, he dragged Bruce from his bench and up to the common room. 

“You going to tell me what this is about, then?” Bruce asked, and Tony fixed him with a look, all mischief gone from his expression.

“So I kinda lied when I said I was working on business stuff over Easter,” he admitted. Bruce’s lips quirked in a wry smile.

“I assumed as much. What were you doing?” Tony pulled the folder containing his print-out of the potion notes, handing it to Bruce.

“I think I’ve found the cure.” Bruce dropped the folder, head snapping up at Tony’s words.

“You… really?” he breathed, stunned. Tony nodded, bending to pick up the folder and hand it back to him.

“I had a hunch before the break, but I didn’t want to work on it here because I didn’t want you to find out in case it didn’t work. So I spent all Easter working on it, and… I think this is the one.” Bruce flipped the folder open, speed-reading through the notes until he’d gotten the gist of it, at which point he threw the folder on the bed and bundled Tony in a rib-crushing hug. 

“I can never thank you enough for this,” he murmured, and Tony hugged him back when he realised there were tears soaking through the collar of his shirt. “Seriously, Tony, just… I owe you _so much_. You didn’t have to do this but you did, and I… you could never possibly understand how much this means to me.”

“You’re my best friend, Bruce, of course I had to do this for you,” Tony told him, kissing his forehead. Bruce leant up, pressing a friendly kiss to his lips.

“You’re way more than I deserve, and I love you,” he declared fiercely, tears still streaming down his face. “When can I take it?”

“Well, I’d like to send it to SI and get it properly tested on others first,” he began, faltering when he saw the look on Bruce’s face. “But you’re not going to let me do that, are you?” 

“I need to take it, Tony. I know I should wait, but… it’s been so _long_.” Tony nodded, running a hand through his hair.

“Sure, sure, I get you. Then how about we take this to Healer McCoy and you take it in the hospital wing, so he can monitor you through it?” Bruce smiled thankfully, nodding.

“Yeah, that… that sounds good. Can we do it now?” he asked hopefully. He looked like a puppy, and Tony had a hard time saying no to that face. He rummaged through his bag, pulling out the padded box he’d stored the potion in. He’d tested for the optimal dose size on his computer, and had it in a single vial; the rest was back in a locked safe in his lab, just in case.

“Let’s go.” Bruce was practically bouncing as they headed for the hospital wing, dragging Tony along by the hand. Healer McCoy seemed surprised to see them, but offered a genial smile. 

“What can I do for you boys, then?” he asked, raising an eyebrow at Bruce’s enthusiasm.

“I think I’ve found a cure for lycanthropy,” Tony said bluntly, shocking the Healer. “Bruce won’t let me put it through proper testing at Stark Industries, so we were wondering if you’d monitor him while he took it.” 

“Of course, of course,” McCoy agreed, looking quite excited. “Give me one moment.” He locked the door of the hospital wing with a spell, pulling back the curtains around the nearest bed for Bruce to sit on. The Ravenclaw toed off his shoes and hopped up onto the bed, allowing McCoy to place a monitoring charm on him, connecting it to a quill and parchment on the side table. The Healer then grabbed a quill and clipboard of his own, poised to take notes. “Ready when you are, gentlemen.” Tony removed the vial from its box, uncorking it and handing it carefully to Bruce. 

“Down it all in one, I can’t promise it’ll taste too great but it’s probably not as bad as Wolfsbane,” he remarked wryly. Bruce nodded, eyes fixed on Tony’s as he necked the potion back. He swallowed harshly, his fists clenching at his sides.

“How do you feel? Tell me everything, even if it’s insignificant to you,” McCoy urged, keeping an eye on the readout of his monitoring charm.

“A little warm, pulse is racing, but that’s probably just nerves,” Bruce narrated. “Feels a little like my blood’s pumping faster than usual — or something’s flooding through it, I don’t know. A little dizzy, but breathing and vision are fine. No pain yet—Ah! Pain! Pain! Definite pain!” He hunched over, clutching at his stomach, and Tony wished he could help him but knew better than to get close to someone testing an experimental potion. Bruce let out a cry that turned into a howl, making Tony worry for a brief moment that he would transform there and then. His chest heaved, and his shirt soaked through with sweat, pain clear in his eyes. “Stomach hurts, muscles tightening in my limbs,” he gritted out as McCoy frantically scribbled notes. “Not worse than a transformation. The wolf seems to be… hiding. He’s not gone, but he’s not fighting me. Pain is easing.” He took several steadying breaths, sitting back up straight and pushing his damp hair off his forehead. “Pain is barely there; just a bit of a stomach ache. I… I feel different. I feel like I’m more in control of my own body,” he breathed, amazed. “The wolf is barely even there, but I can still feel him.” He frowned, brow furrowing. “Is that supposed to happen? I mean, if I was cured, he’d be gone, right?” McCoy frowned, peering at the monitoring charm’s readings. 

“Everything looks to be in order,” he murmured. “Let me take some blood, my boy, and we can see if the virus is still present.” Bruce nodded, holding out an arm obediently, and McCoy drew a vial of blood with ease, wandering over to his desk to drop some onto a slide, fixing it in his microscope. Tony followed, wanting a look for himself. “Tony, take a look at this, back me up.” McCoy stepped aside, and Tony peered into the microscope, cataloguing things carefully. He’d spent a fair portion of the last three weeks staring at Bruce’s blood, and this was definitely different. The aggressive-looking little microbes that carried the lycanthropy virus and latched onto the blood cells weren’t present.

“It’s gone,” he confirmed, a wide grin slowly coming across his face. McCoy matched it, patting him on the shoulder. 

“Well done, my boy! Oh, this is marvellous! Bruce, I’d like you to stay overnight for observation, but I think we can quite safely say that you are no longer a werewolf. You’re definitely no longer infectious, at any rate. Congratulations,” McCoy added softly, his smile never faltering. “I’ll leave you to get changed for bed. Mr Stark, please don’t stay too late, Bruce needs his rest.” With that, he retreated to his office, leaving the two Ravenclaws alone.

“You did it, Tony,” Bruce breathed, grinning. “You saved me. I… thank you.” Tony crossed to stand by his bed, pulling him into a tight hug.

“Don’t thank me until we know for sure,” he said halfheartedly. “But you’re welcome.” He pulled back, ruffling Bruce’s sweat-dampened hair. “You should probably shower before bed. I’ll leave you to it, I guess. Bacon in the morning?” he asked, already knowing the answer.

“I love you, Tony,” Bruce murmured, hopping off the bed and grabbing the hospital pyjamas that rested on the end of it. “See you tomorrow.”

“Sleep tight, honeybunch.” Tony waited until he was out of the hospital wing before whooping loudly, fist-pumping in glee.

.-.-.

The first full moon after Bruce had taken the potion, McCoy took him down to the shack anyway, just in case. Tony insisted on staying up all night in the hospital wing, waiting for Bruce to return; McCoy wouldn’t let him come down with them, as he didn’t want Tony to get hurt should something go wrong. 

He kept himself busy by working through schematics on his tablet, and barely even realised it was morning until the doors burst open. Bruce practically ran through, beaming at him. “It worked!” he exclaimed, and Tony’s heart skipped a beat. “Well, sort-of. I transformed, but it was painless, and I had complete control of the wolf,” he added, slightly breathless. “It was like an animagus transformation, but forced; Healer McCoy says I’ll still have to spend moons outside the castle, just for safety, but maybe in a few months he’ll let me run in the forest instead of having to stay in the shack.” A euphoric laugh bubbled up in his throat, and he hugged Tony so hard the billionaire’s feet left the floor. “Thank you. I could say it every day for the rest of my life and it still wouldn’t be enough, but thank you.” Tony grinned, kissing Bruce’s cheek.

“You’re welcome, Bruce. I’m happy for you, I really am; you deserve to be free.” And hey, if Bruce still transformed, they could still join him when they completed the animagus transformations. Not that Bruce knew about that. He looked over the other boy’s shoulder at McCoy, who was watching them with a grin. “Is he free to go, or do you need to run more tests?” McCoy shook his head, stifling a yawn.

“No, I think I’ve run about as many tests as I can think of,” he replied. “I’ll put my notes together for you to send along with the rest of the research for Stark Industries testing and potion patenting,” he added to Tony, who nodded. “But for now, he’s all yours.” Tony grinned, grabbing Bruce’s hand.

“Bed time, I think,” he declared, dragging him from the hospital wing. “I don’t know about you, but I need sleep. And then we’re calling the others together, because this deserves celebrating.” Bruce stopped, nearly yanking Tony’s arm out of his socket; evidently the werewolf strength was still there. Tony turned back with an eyebrow raised in query, seeing tears start streaming down Bruce’s face.

“I’m sorry, I can’t help it, I… this all feels like a dream,” he rasped, shoulders shaking. Tony pulled him into a hug, and they both sank to their knees on the stone floor. It was too early for anyone to come across them, so Tony didn’t hesitate to pull Bruce onto his lap. 

“Let it out, big guy. Let it all out,” he murmured soothingly. Bruce choked out another sob, gripping the front of Tony’s hoodie tightly with both hands. Tony merely held him close, kissing his hair and whispering to him. 

It was a long time until they got back up again, but neither of them really minded.


	15. The Madness of OWLs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> OWLs are upon the eldest of the Avengers, and some cope better than others.

Spring meant only one thing at Hogwarts; exams. More importantly, for the fifth years, it meant OWLs. March melted into April, which drew dangerously close to May, and suddenly they realised that it was only a matter of weeks before their exams began. The library was constantly full, students were regularly heading to the hospital wing for calming potions, and in the midst of it all was Pepper Potts.

Not only was she revising for her own exams, she was making sure the rest of her fifth year friends revised, as well as dragging Tony out of Stark Industries projects because he insisted they couldn’t wait even though they definitely could. He was letting her off her official SI duties, which she appreciated, but she’d appreciate it far more if he would actually sit down and do the work he was supposed to do. Steve had better luck getting him to concentrate… at least until both of them got distracted and started making out. Yes, it was better for both of them if they stayed apart during the hours Tony was meant to be studying. Of course, that didn’t stop Steve from regularly dropping by with food and coffee, but Clint did the same for Phil and Pepper could hardly begrudge them that.

Her own relationship… the less said about it, the better. She had warned Natasha before the OWL madness had started that she was likely to get neurotic and crabby and stressed out, and Natasha had told her it was fine, but when that had become reality the Slytherin girl made herself scarce. Most of the time Pepper was perfectly happy with that — the less around to distract her, the better — but there were times when, after a long day of studying, she wanted nothing more than to sink into her girlfriend’s arms, and Natasha just _wasn’t there_. She couldn’t really blame the younger girl — she wouldn’t want to be around her, either — but it still sucked.

Pepper was currently in her room studying, for once. Phil was studying in his own dorm, and needed no checking up on. He was definitely her favourite right now. Bruce had text and promised that he and Tony were in Ravenclaw with Jane, making Herbology notes, and as for the Gryffindors, well… Peggy would sort herself out, and the boys would either fall into place and join her or stay in their dorm and not. None of them seemed to be that bothered by OWLs, but Pepper supposed they were all set to take over their respective family businesses, regardless of exam results. 

Growling under her breath, Pepper shoved her Ancient Runes textbook away, head pounding. She needed to keep reading, but none of it would stick when her mind was like this. She almost didn’t notice the knock at the door, looking up when it swung open slowly. “I come bearing sugar,” Natasha declared with a half-smile, gesturing with the tray in her hands. She had a mug of what was probably coffee, a bowl of raspberries and the biggest slice of chocolate cake Pepper had ever seen. God, Pepper could already feel herself salivating. 

“I don’t have time for a break,” she said instead, reaching for the folder she kept her Potions notes in. Most of them were Tony’s — the one subject in which his notes were better than hers — and she hoped they’d be a little less headache-inducing than Runes. 

“Come on, you look like you could use one. Ten minutes, fifteen tops,” Tasha urged, setting the tray on the small part of Pepper’s desk that wasn’t covered in books and paper. She moved behind her girlfriend’s chair, massaging her shoulders gently, but Pepper shrugged her off. 

“Thanks for the coffee, and the food, but I really don’t have time for this. Go bug Clint or something,” she said somewhat snappishly. Tasha raised an eyebrow, folding her arms over her chest. 

“I’m bugging you, am I?” she asked sharply. “Next time I won’t bother then. But I can’t hang with Clint, because he’s with Phil, who actually _recognises_ that studying twenty-four hours a day isn’t healthy.” 

“Phil is in the top five of every class, he can afford to take breaks,” Pepper retorted, reaching to sip at the coffee Tasha had brought. 

“Pepper, you’re right up there with him! You’re best friends with Tony goddamn Stark, that doesn’t mean you have to compare yourself to him! Or Bruce, or Jane, or even Phil; you’re just as smart as he is and we both know it. If you don’t want me around, just say so, but I’d appreciate it if you’d just accept the damn help when it’s offered to you,” the Slytherin girl argued. Pepper turned in her chair, glaring. 

“Natasha, you don’t understand! If I don’t get good grades in these exams, I won’t be able to take the subjects I want to for NEWTs, and then how the hell will I get a decent job?” 

“Pepper, you _have_ a job!” Natasha exclaimed, eyebrows raised. “You’re Tony Stark’s PA. When you’re both graduated and working fulltime for Stark Industries you’ll be the most obscenely well-paid PA in the world and we both know it! I get these exams are important to you, but you’ll burn out if you spend all your time in your books! It won’t kill you to take a little time out and actually talk to your girlfriend who has barely _seen_ you in a month!” 

“Where the hell were you three weeks ago, then, when I was actually taking breaks and could have used some time with my girlfriend who was _never around_.” Natasha scoffed, giving Pepper an incredulous stare. 

“Are you kidding me? I tried to be around, and you snapped at me every damn time! I came to find you and you were in the library with the others, or up here studying on your own. Tony lets Steve drag him away for some down-time, Bruce lets Tony and Steve drag him with them, Phil will happily drop the books to go with Clint, Jane and Thor take breaks together, the boys barely study in the first place and Peggy takes breaks whenever she needs to go yell at Bucky! You’re the only damn one who won’t let anyone take care of you, so I gave up, okay!” 

“Well maybe that’s for the best!” Pepper yelled back, and both of them froze, eyes wide as they realised where their argument was heading. 

“This isn’t working out,” Tasha murmured, perching on the edge of Pepper’s bed and tucking one knee up to her chest. 

“It’s really not,” Pepper agreed softly. If she was honest with herself, the tension had been there for longer than she’d been in exam-frenzy. All their friends’ relationships had moved forward and they’d gotten closer together as time went on, and they’d just sort-of… stayed in place. “Promise me, Tasha,” she said, meeting the Slytherin’s eyes. “Promise me that if we break up, we’ll stay friends. I don’t want to make the others choose sides.” 

“Of course,” Natasha agreed immediately, not needing to think about it. She had nothing against Pepper — even if she was a little pissed at her right now — they just weren’t doing well as a couple. “And I think it’s more ‘when’ at this point, don’t you?” she added wryly. Pepper sighed, finally getting up from her chair and moving to sit beside the other redhead. 

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, leaning her head against Tasha’s shoulder. 

“Not your fault; these things happen. And hey, even if I’m not your girlfriend, can I convince you to take a break and have some chocolate?” she asked, making Pepper chuckle. 

“I think breaking up with my girlfriend entitles me to a day off for chocolate cake and a little crying,” she retorted. Tasha frowned, sliding an arm around her. 

“Pepper…” Pepper shook her head, meeting her eyes confidently. 

“No, no, I’m okay. It’s for the best, we’ll end up killing each other at this rate. But, uh, if you don’t mind, I’d like to be alone for a little while?” Natasha nodded, leaning in for one last kiss. 

“I’ll, uh, let the others know, yeah?” Pepper shrugged. 

“Sure, but let me tell Tony. You know how he is, he’ll assume something catastrophic happened,” she added with a weak chuckle. Natasha snorted and got to her feet, tucking Pepper’s hair back behind her ear. 

“I’ll see you in the morning, then. Don’t stay up too late, you need your sleep.” With that, she left the room, heading for Clint’s room where she knew she’d find both Clint and Phil, wanting nothing more than to curl up between them for a while. Pepper, on the other hand, leaned back in her bed and summoned the tray over, tipping the bowl of raspberries over the chocolate cake. Fork in one hand, she reached for her phone, pressing the speeddial number for Tony. 

“Hey, Pepper Pot, how’s it hanging?” Tony asked, an ease to his voice that let her know he was with Steve, and possibly Bruce. 

“Tasha and I broke up,” she told him, voice shaking a little. Tears started trickling down her cheeks, and she wiped them away in annoyance. It was a mutual break-up, she shouldn’t be crying over it! 

“Oh, honey,” Tony breathed, concerned. “Need me to come over? Bring ice cream?” She laughed, the sound somewhat wet. 

“No, no, it’s fine. It was mutual; we’ve been weird for a while, it just took time to realise it. I’m okay, I just wanted you to hear it from me so you didn’t start taking sides or whatever. We’re staying friends,” she added. 

“You sure you don’t want me to come over? I have it on good authority that I give great hugs,” he told her, drawing a smile to her lips. 

“Tempting, but I’ll pass. You have a nice evening with Steve and Bruce, if he’s there too.” 

“No, he’s studying with Jane, though I think they’ve gone off track again. Just me and Steve for now, want me to pass you over?” Pepper hummed in affirmation, smile widening at Steve’s voice. 

“Hi, Pepper. Is everything okay?” he asked, worry clear in his tone. 

“Tasha and I split just now, it wasn’t working out. But I’m okay,” she assured firmly, as if saying it would make it true. “I just need a little cry and some alone time.” 

“Wow, Pepper, that’s awful, I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do?” he asked in true Steve fashion. 

“No, not really. Just… don’t make things weird? Tony too — I know you’re listening in, mister. Tasha and I are gonna stay friends, and I don’t want you guys acting weird and protective when we’re together, okay? She didn’t do anything wrong,” she insisted. 

“No problem,” Steve agreed easily. “And I’ll keep Tony in line.” She heard a faint noise of offence that had to have come from the Stark heir. “If you need anything, don’t hesitate to call, okay? I’ll pass you back to Tony. Have a nice night, Pepper.” 

“You too, Steve.” There was a pause, before Tony was back on the line. 

“I won’t get all weird and protective. Scout’s honour,” Tony promised, making her smile. 

“Tony, you were never a scout,” she pointed out dryly. 

“Point still stands. I’ll let you have some time to yourself now, but like Steve said, you need anything, I’m just a button away. Love you, Pep,” he added softly. 

“I love you too, Tony. Goodnight.” She hung up, letting the phone fall beside her as she started cutting up the cake with the fork. Yeah, she wouldn’t be getting any work done for the rest of the night. 

.-.-. 

The group had easily split in two; those who were in fifth year, and those who weren’t. Clint, Steve, Bucky, Sif, Rhodey, Natasha and Darcy had taken to hanging out together, especially in the last two weeks before the exams. They had exams of their own to study for, and any time they tried to do so in front of their fifth year friends, they were subjected to a rant about how their exams weren’t nearly as important as the ones they were gearing up to take. Steve and Clint were the only ones who had real contact with the fifth years, spending nights with their respective boyfriends and visiting them during the day to make sure they hadn’t died or anything. Tony wasn’t exactly studying, but he joined his yearmates for moral support, and did occasionally do some work when the mood struck. 

The break-up between Pepper and Tasha had been accepted fairly quietly, without much bad blood, though Clint did glare at Pepper for a little while until Natasha told him to stop. They all had more important things to concentrate on, anyway. With exams a mere few days away, there wasn’t a person in Hogwarts who was seen without a book in hand. “Merlin, why did I take Arithmancy?” Darcy groaned, resting her head on Clint’s shoulder. He ruffled her hair in sympathy, a half-smile on his face. 

“Because it looks good on your CV?” he reminded her. She snorted, rolling her eyes. 

“Who the hell needs a CV? I’m getting Tony to hire me as soon as I graduate,” she insisted. “He already promised he would.” 

“He was sleep-deprived and on a caffeine high, I don’t think it counts,” Steve told the Hufflepuff girl, who glared at him. 

“Lies.” Clint snickered, shoving her off his shoulder to prompt her into getting back to work. 

“First exam tomorrow. You ready?” Bucky queried, earning vehement denial from everyone in the room. 

“Hell no. But it’s Charms, which is probably my best subject, so I think I’ll be okay. I’m more worried about getting Phil to sleep tonight; Herbology followed by Potions for him, tomorrow,” Clint replied with a wince. It was well known that Phil’s least-favourite subjects were Herbology and Potions. 

“I think they’ve all written Herbology off as a loss,” Bucky remarked with a snort. “I know Pegs has.” To everyone’s amazement, the couple were still together, though the entire castle seemed to be counting down the days until Peggy finally lost her temper with him. Even Bucky himself seemed impressed. 

“They should be fine with Potions, though. Tony and Bruce have drilled it into them enough, I think they’ll take it as a personal offence if any of them fail,” Steve joked, his Charms books long abandoned for his sketchpad. He was feeling fairly confident about his exams, for once. An upside of the serum was improved mental capabilities, such as memory. When you added that to the extra knowledge that came just from hanging around Tony Stark so much, he was feeling pretty good. He glanced down at his watch, frowning faintly. “Speaking of Tony, I should get to bed,” he remarked, then blushed when he realised how that sounded. No one called him out on it, though, for which he was grateful. 

“Yeah, I think we all should,” Rhodey agreed, rolling his shoulders and wincing when they cracked loudly. “Don’t want to turn up zombified to the exam tomorrow.” They packed up their things, and the Hufflepuffs and Slytherins went one way, while the Gryffindors went the other. Steve went with his Gryffindor friends, though broke off from them to head to Ravenclaw when they reached the right corridor, hands in his pockets and a faint smile on his face. It was kind-of nice to walk through the corridors without having to worry about bigger kids trying to beat him up. 

He solved the riddle to get into the common room fairly easily, and no one still in the common room was surprised to see him in there. He’d become a near-permanent fixture in Ravenclaw house over the past eight months or so. Heading up the stairs to Tony’s dorm, he knocked once and didn’t wait for an answer before entering. Bruce was in bed with a Herbology textbook in his hands, while Tony was playing with a snitch in his own bed. His face lit up when he spotted the blonde, and he sat up. “Steve!” he exclaimed cheerfully, jumping up to tackle his taller boyfriend in a kiss. “Hey, handsome. How you doing? Nervous?” Steve shrugged, one arm sliding loosely around Tony’s waist. 

“A little, but not really. I don’t think I’ll fail, which is all I have to worry about. How about you?” He directed his question at both Tony and Bruce, toeing off his shoes in order to crawl into bed with Tony, swatting the snitch aside. Tony’s hand darted out lightning-fast to catch it, and he set it back in its box. 

“I’m okay. A little nervous, but I’d be worried if I wasn’t. Tony’s hyper, please make him stop,” Bruce requested politely, not looking up from his book. Steve snorted, and Tony grinned even wider. 

“Bruce, sugarplum, he can’t make me stop with you in the room. Unless you’re into that sort of thing,” he added with a wink towards his friend. Steve rolled his eyes, too used to Tony’s insinuations to blush. It was all bark and no bite; they hadn’t even had sex yet. Steve wasn’t fifteen until July, and they both agreed they weren’t in any rush. 

“C’mon, Tony. You need your sleep,” Steve murmured, rubbing his boyfriend’s shoulders gently in the way he knew Tony couldn’t resist. Sure enough, his head dropped, and he let out a pleased hum. 

“But Steeeeve, I’m not tired,” he whined, sounding like a child. Steve snorted, kissing his neck. 

“Tony, sweetheart, come on. Brush your teeth and let’s go to bed, early start tomorrow.” With a fair amount of prodding, Steve managed to get Tony into bed, and Bruce set his book aside and got the lights with his wand. 

“Night, guys,” he called, rolling over and shutting the drapes. Steve pulled Tony’s shut after they’d both said goodnight to Bruce, then wrapped Tony in his arms, pulling him close. 

“You’ve got enough stuff up here to last you through exams, right?” Tony queried, and Steve nodded. They’d planned for Steve to stay in Ravenclaw, knowing Tony wouldn’t sleep if left to his own devices. There was a duffle bag full of Steve’s stuff in the bottom of Tony’s wardrobe. 

“Should do, yeah. If not, we can always call a house elf to bring stuff over.” Tony smiled, resting his head on Steve’s chest, fingers tangling in the soft cotton of his sleep shirt. “Just sleep, Tony. Even geniuses need their sleep,” he added teasingly, carding a hand through his boyfriend’s dark hair. Tony hummed, hugging Steve tighter and getting comfortable. He was still practically vibrating with energy, but Steve just let his hands roam, gently massaging and soothing all the spots he knew would turn Tony into a happy puddle of goo. He smirked to himself when he felt the Ravenclaw’s breathing finally even out, shutting his own eyes to join his boyfriend in sleep. 

.-.-. 

Exams spanned three weeks in total, and by the end of those three weeks, everyone in the castle was just about brain-dead. The fifth and seventh years more than anyone else, though they also had the trouble of having to anxiously await their results all summer. Steve managed to talk Tony out of throwing a post-exams party, insisting that everyone just wanted some sleep and some time to relax. They only had a week left of school as it was, and they wouldn’t be doing much in it. Still, they managed to gather in the Room for a movie night, staying up until well gone midnight joking and having popcorn fights and generally getting rid of any tension leftover from exams. It was, thankfully, several days after the last exam; no one had wanted to be in the same room as Phil and Clint once they finally embraced their freedom. 

Pepper felt a lot better with the exam stress gone, and as Bucky and Peggy had split after exam week one, it was less awkward to be around the group. Even Clint had stopped acting strangely around her, and she was confident that after a summer’s break, no one would even remember that there was anything different. “Come sit down, Pepper Pot, you’re missing the best part,” Tony urged, reaching over the back of the couch towards her. He’d grabbed the biggest couch, enough to fit himself, Steve, Bruce and her on it, and the hollow between his legs and Bruce was waiting for her to return to it. She smiled, grabbing the popcorn she’d gotten up to get in the first place and hopping over the back of the couch, resting her head on Bruce’s shoulder. He smiled at her, shifting his arm around her shoulders to be more comfortable. At least they had another two years before NEWTs. 


	16. Building Bridges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor is fed up of Loki pretending he doesn’t know him. As summer begins, he is determined to win the boy over.

Loki sighed to himself as he pulled his trunk towards the Hogwarts Express, squeezing his way through the crowds of people desperate to head home for the summer. Going home on his own over Easter had been the worst idea he’d ever had, but even Thor’s presence couldn’t distract Odin from Loki over a whole summer. If he thought he could get away with it, he’d hide in the castle until the beginning of the new school year. However, while he could probably live in the incredible room Sif had shown him, he was sure at least one person would notice him missing eventually.

Heaving his trunk onto the train, he wandered down in search of an empty compartment. Darcy was with her friends, and Sif and the boys were in with Thor; he didn’t mind. He liked spending train journeys on his own. “Brother!” He stifled a groan at the booming voice, turning slowly on his heel. “Come join us in our journey home!”

“No, thank you,” Loki replied curtly, trying to edge away from Thor. The blonde teen took up the entirety of the narrow corridor, and he was holding up the crush of people trying to find seats. Since he was Thor, no one really minded. “I’d much rather sit alone.” He hated the look on the Gryffindor’s face, like a kicked puppy, but it was better than the alternative of spending the entire trip in his company. He needed time to balance himself in preparation for an entire summer living with Thor, trying not to reveal his feelings. 

“Oh,” Thor murmured, frowning. “I… of course. If that is your wish. However, should you change your mind, we will welcome you with open arms.”

“Fantastic.” Loki continued on his way, resolving not to turn around and look at the crestfallen expression on his adoptive brother’s face. If he did, he might not be able to walk away. 

Finding an empty compartment near the end of the train, he secured his trunk in the luggage rack and pulled a book out of his satchel, curling up in the corner of the compartment. He only had a few more hours of blessed silence; he had to make the most of them.

.-.-.

Thor’s shoulders slumped as he watched Loki walk away, and he yearned to reach out and beg the younger boy to tell him what he’d done wrong. “Come on, honey. You’re blocking the corridor,” Jane urged, leaning in the doorway of their compartment and placing a hand on his arm, a sympathetic look in her eyes. 

“Right, of course.” Thor slipped back into the compartment, taking his seat between Jane and Hogun once more, a morose expression on his face. Jane reached up to kiss his cheek, leaning against his shoulder. 

“It’s not your fault, Thor,” she insisted gently. “Loki is… strange.” Thor bristled automatically, opening his mouth to defend his brother. Loki wasn’t strange, merely difficult to understand. Unfortunately, Thor didn’t think he was one of the people who did. Every time he thought he was close to understanding his younger brother, Loki went and did something that set him right back at the beginning. 

“I have done something to offend him,” he declared firmly; there was no other option. “I only wish he might tell me what that is so I can make amends.”

“There is nothing for you to make amends for, I can assure you,” Sif piped up, a book open in her lap and her feet tucked up underneath her. “Loki has many things weighing on him, and he needs to work through them on his own. The best thing you can do is give him the space he desires.” Thor wanted to believe her, he really did; though her romantic relationship with Loki hadn’t worked out, she was still probably the Slytherin’s closest friend, except perhaps for Darcy. 

“If I give him space much longer, I fear I shall never make up the distance between us,” he implored. The look on Sif’s face told him that that was quite possibly Loki’s hope, and it made Thor feel cold inside. 

The train began to move, and Thor allowed himself to be dragged into boisterous conversation with Volstagg and Hogun, Sif occasionally interrupting with a snippet of logic to derail their arguments. His heart wasn’t in it, though, and he was glad when more of their friends dropped by for a visit, filling the small compartment with even more voices to make up for the lack of enthusiasm in his own. His mind was several compartments down, dwelling on the image of Loki all on his own while Thor was surrounded by friends. He knew Darcy was sat with Clint, Phil and Natasha, and hoped that maybe the Hufflepuff girl would seek Loki out sooner or later. If he knew Darcy, it was likely she would. 

Jane left with Tony, Bruce and Steve, going to talk science with her fellow Ravenclaws before they were parted for a whole nine weeks. She, like all the rest of them, had an open invitation to either of Tony’s homes — New York or London, Tony assured them he’d be splitting his time between them — and would probably take him up on that when the urge to create and experiment grew overwhelming. Bruce, from what Thor knew, was planning on practically living with Tony for the summer. While his other skin was far more complacent since Tony’s potion, his mother didn’t trust him. From the little Thor was aware of, the relationship between the werewolf and his mother had been strained since Bruce was turned, and now he was growing older she was feeling less guilty about making him spend time anywhere but home.

“Sif, will you walk with me for a moment?” he requested softly, not wanting to disturb the conversation between Pepper, Rhodey, Bucky and Peggy. Sif raised an eyebrow at him, but nodded, sliding her bookmark into her book and leaving it as a claim to her seat. Thor left the compartment without murmuring his excuses, and Sif tucked herself into his side so they could talk properly in the narrow train corridors. “Please, I need to know how to repair my relationship with Loki. I… he has not been the same, recently. That, or I have become more aware of how much he keeps hidden about his true feelings.” He suspected it was the latter. “I can’t stand feeling like this anymore, Sif. I can’t bear knowing he hates me.”

“He doesn’t hate you,” Sif told him, her voice so firm that Thor believed her. “Loki loves you, he just… it’s complicated. He has no problems with you, Thor, but I’m sure you’re aware how little regard he has for your father. I’m sure Loki’s problems stem from not wanting to associate you with Odin. He can’t bring himself to trust you when there’s the chance you might turn out the same way as he is.” It physically pained Thor to hear confirmation that Loki didn’t trust him. 

“But I am nothing like my father!” he insisted earnestly. “Once, perhaps, but as I grow older I am less blinded to Odin’s faults, and I find myself drawing more distinctions between us.”

“Then let Loki see that,” Sif replied, smiling faintly. “Perhaps treat him as a friend, instead of a brother. His adoption has always been a point of contention for him, and he feels you are denying his true heritage by insisting upon your relation. You have the whole summer, Thor; no Hogwarts, no separate houses, nothing but his own wit to allow him to keep hiding from you. He may spend a week at Darcy’s, but that’s still eight weeks in which you two will be living together. We both know you and Odin are two very different people; show Loki that, and he’s likely to trust you again.” Thor brightened, and Sif paused, brows furrowed. 

“What?” Thor asked apprehensively, not liking the look on her face. The dark-haired girl bit her lip, looking uncomfortable. 

“There are things you don’t know; things that I cannot tell you for fear of breaking Loki’s confidence. If he is still somewhat wary of you even after you regain his trust… do not push him. He needs to come to terms with that on his own.” Thor yearned to know what she was talking about, but knew he couldn’t force her to tell him Loki’s secrets. He didn’t want to hear it unless it came from the Slytherin’s lips himself. 

“Of course,” he agreed, brightening slightly. There was hope, after all! “Thank you, my lady; as usual, you are the wisest of us all.” He hugged her around the shoulders, and she smiled, slipping an arm around his waist to squeeze back.

“Of course I am,” she replied with a laugh. “You boys need someone to keep you in check.” Thor chuckled, and the pair of them turned around to head back to their compartment, Thor already drafting a plan in his mind. By the end of the summer, Loki would be speaking to him again. He was sure of it.

.-.-.

When the train came to a halt in Kings Cross Station, Loki waited until it was nearly empty before finally shutting his book and grabbing his trunk, making for the platform. Glancing out of the window, he saw Thor with Odin and Frigga, greeting his mother with a hug that lifted her clean off her feet. Would they really notice if he didn’t turn up? Odin clapped Thor on the shoulder, checking his watch pointedly, and Loki sighed; of course they would. He couldn’t delay it any longer.

Frigga smiled warmly at him as he approached them, reaching out to hug him tightly. “Loki, dear,” she murmured, kissing his forehead. “Good to see you. How did your exams go?”

“Well enough, Mother,” he replied, managing a smile in return. Frigga had never done him wrong; her only fault was marrying Odin. 

“Good, you’re both here. Shall we get going?” Odin asked impatiently, not moving to greet Loki the same way he’d greeted Thor. 

“Might I have a moment to say goodbye to Jane, father?” Thor asked hopefully, and the bearded man rolled his eyes.

“Yes, very well.” Thor grinned, darting towards where Jane was stood. She was laughing at Stark, who was making an enormous production of having to be separated from his boyfriend, clinging onto Rogers’ waist with an iron grip that barely bothered the tall blonde. Loki smiled faintly, though it was bitter. It was times like this he wished he’d taken Darcy up on one of her many offers to join her friends more often. Thor and Darcy’s friends were good people, from what he knew of them, and their friendship with Natasha proved they had nothing against Slytherins. Stark was even nice to him, the few times they spoke, which was more than half the school could say. Maybe next year, once he got over his stupid infatuation with Thor.

“Hey, Loki!” He turned automatically at the call, just in time to catch the snorter brunette as she flounced into his arms, hugging him tightly. “My parents are here so I gotta split, but you’re still coming to mine for a week, right?” Darcy beamed at him, kissing his cheek, and he couldn’t help but smile back.

“Of course. I’ll call you,” he promised, patting his coat pocket in which his Starkphone resided. He still didn’t know why he had one, only that it was Darcy’s doing. “See you soon.”

“Love you.” With one last hug, Darcy was darting off into the crowd, her Hufflepuff scarf flying out behind her. 

“Who was that?” Odin asked with raised eyebrows, narrowed eyes fixing on his adoptive son. Loki forced himself not to blush, meeting the man’s gaze with his head held high.

“My friend Darcy. The one I’m spending a week with later in the summer.”

“Don’t you remember, dear? She stayed for a while last summer; she’s friends with Sif and the boys, too,” Frigga added, squeezing her husband’s arm. Loki’s lips curled in a frown at that; Darcy wasn’t friends with the others like she was friends with him. Darcy was his _best_ friend. The way Frigga spoke made it sound like Darcy, like everyone else, only hung around Loki because she hung around Thor and the others. 

Thor returned, a pleased grin on his face and a smudge of Jane’s pale lipstick on his cheek that made Loki’s stomach turn. “I’m ready to leave now, Father.” Odin nodded shortly, resting a hand on Thor’s shoulder to direct him toward an empty area of the platform, apparating away with the blonde without a word. Frigga held out an arm to Loki, who linked his through hers, and a split second later he was jarred by the uncomfortable sensation of side-along apparition. 

.-.-.

Thor managed to escape his father’s office several hours after arriving home, having discussed just about everything of mild interest to the man. Thor’s grades, his quidditch performance, his NEWT choices, his friends, the arrangements to sign the paperwork making him his father’s heir as soon as he turned seventeen in November. Plenty of things that could have waited, and plenty that Thor felt Odin had no business asking about to begin with. Still, he played his father’s game, staying as vague as possible with the details he didn’t want the man knowing, and practically ran from the office as soon as he was dismissed.

Wandering down to the kitchen, Thor raided the cupboards and piled together a sandwich, wolfing it down in barely a minute before heading back upstairs, intent on finding Loki. 

He found the younger boy in the library, in his usual chair with a book on his knee, music playing quietly in the background. Loki didn’t look up when Thor entered, though the slight furrow of his eyebrows let Thor know he hadn’t gone unnoticed. Clearing his throat, he waited patiently for Loki to finish his page before giving him an expectant look. “I was wondering if you’d like to come flying with me?” Thor asked hopefully, trying not to fiddle with the hem of his shirt in anxiousness. 

“No, thank you,” Loki replied evenly, polite as ever. Thor frowned, but didn’t let it deter him.

“Then… may I stay and read with you?” Loki blinked, the surprise clear on his face. Thor couldn’t really blame him; he never read of his own volition. Still, he nodded, even as he eyed Thor strangely.

“You live here, too; I can hardly bar you from the library.” Thor grinned, heading over to the Transfiguration shelves to get out a book on human to animal transformations, taking it back with him to the chair opposite Loki’s. Tony had promised to get working on a way to speed up the animagus transformation, now he was done with OWLs and Bruce’s cure, but in the mean time he’d advised them all to start the process as normal,and see how far they could get. “You hate Transfiguration,” Loki commented, peering over the top of his book to eye Thor’s choice.

“I’ll need to get ahead if I have any hope of passing my NEWT,” Thor reasoned. He’d like to tell Loki the real reason, but Bruce’s secret was not his to share. “I cannot rely on my friends like I did with my OWLs.” Loki’s expression held a faint look of pleased surprise — and a tiny amount of pride, if Thor looked closely enough — and it made the blonde force down a grin.

For once, the pair managed to be in each others’ company for hours at a time without an argument breaking out, reading in a companionable silence. Occasionally, Thor would break it in order to ask Loki what a term or phrase meant, and Loki would answer as succinctly but informatively as he could. Thor couldn’t stop himself from smiling, and when Frigga came up to call them to dinner, the astonished look on her face upon finding them together quickly gave way to a grin. Thor stood and left his book on the chair, planning to come back to it, and he smiled when Loki did the same. “Maybe we could keep reading after dinner?” he requested of the Slytherin. Loki blinked in surprise, before Thor was rewarded with the smallest smile, but a smile nonetheless. 

“That would be acceptable,” Loki replied, darting ahead of him to get to dinner before Odin could chide him for being late. Thor followed, beaming, and made a mental note to sends some strawberry fudge to Sif in thanks for her advice. He would have Loki’s friendship back by the end of the summer, he just knew it.


End file.
